Come Undone
by fatal petal
Summary: [AU: BR, YY, MM] Ryou, a sort-of-but-not-really conservative high school boy. Bakura, an ex-drug lord on the run from his dark past. Somehow they meet, and their lives are drawn into a world of danger and inevitable love. CHAPTER 6 UP!
1. Once, there were two boys

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TITLE: Come undone

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RATING: R

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PAIRINGS: Bakura/Ryou, Mariku/Malik, Yami/Yugi, maybe some future Seto/Jou

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WARNINGS: Major Yaoi AU, Implied sex, innuendo, foul language, a bit of OOC-ness, drug usage

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FOR: My best net friend, **corn3ts**, as a belated birthday gift and an apology for my delayed beta duties. ^_^ Also, to my very persistent cousin Jen, who threatened to feed me to her plushies if I didn't make her a B/R fic. And of course, this is for all of you Bakura/Ryou fans out there. I hope you'll enjoy!

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NOTES: Since this is an AU, I doubt there would be any brouhaha about Duel Monsters, so if you're looking for something where Yami and Bakura are duking it out using their cards, well, you've come to the wrong place, honey. Also, another thing is that I've made surnames for Ryou, Yami, Bakura and Mariku, so they could be easily distinguished.

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SUMMARY: Ryou, who's studying in an all-boys school, is dragged by his best friend Malik to a rather seedy-looking club. There he meets the boy of his dreams, one Hidomu Bakura. But Bakura has a secret that could cost them their lives. Will their love survive? And more importantly, will _they _survive?

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COME UNDONE

__

Kring! Kring! Kring!

The shrill ringing of the alarm clock on his bedside stand intruded in on Ryou's dreams, jolting his senses to full consciousness. He groggily banged his fist hard on the alarm once, yawning slightly after it stopped its ringing. He was about to stand up from the foot of the bed and oblige his aching bladder by going to the bathroom just a few feet away from him, but another sound interrupted his thoughts again.

And this time it definitely wasn't the alarm clock.

Oh, no… something much worse.

He glanced above at the top of the bunk bed that he and his roommate and best friend Malik were sharing, and promptly turned his head away. He had just witnessed another rather disturbing moment in his best friend's colorful sex life.

God, he _hated _it when he saw two bodies moving under Malik's sheets every damn Saturday morning that Kami-sama had created.

Discreetly, Ryou coughed to get the random person that Malik was screwing and Malik's attention.

"Ooohh…yes…keep doing that…"

Not-so-discreetly, Ryou coughed again.

"Oh, Malik, baby… I didn't know you could twist that way…"

With his eye violently twitching, Ryou loudly said an exaggerated _"Ahem-Ahem!"_

"That's it, suck you little-"

__

"Malik!"

Rustling of sheets were heard, then suddenly Malik poked his light-blond head out of the sheets and grinned sheepishly at Ryou. "Morning, Ryou! You're looking beautiful today!" He said cheerily to the silver-haired boy glaring at him below. Ryou sighed loudly as he ran a hand through his hair.

"Malik, what did I tell you about about having sex on a Saturday morning when I'm still here?"

"Uhm… to never even dream of doing it ever?"

"Yes, exactly. I'm going to the bathroom in a few seconds. When I get out there, I expect to see you, and _only _you in that bed of yours…and stop grinning at me like that, Malik, because you are _not _getting out of this one."

Said guilty party squawked rather awkwardly in indignation and almost fell out of the top bunk, momentarily forgetting about the other person beside him. "Aaaaw… Ryou! I'm a normal teenage guy with raging hormones! Normal teenage guys with raging hormones absolutely _need _a good Saturday morning screw!"

Ryou crossed his arms in front of himself and narrowed his eyes even further. "So, you're saying that I'm not normal?"

"Yeah! C'mon, I mean, sixteen and still a virgin-"

"Takahashi's still a virgin?!" Interrupted a loud and obviously disbelieving voice from under the sheets next to Malik, who elbowed the voice's owner in the face.

Ryou, for his part, shook his head in disgust and amusement. But when he heard about the 'virgin' part, his cheeks immediately turned red. "Whatever. I'm going now, okay? So, when I come back…" Malik nodded and waved a hand in dismissal. "Yeah, yeah… spare me the lecture of my consequences."

Ryou turned his back on them, and went inside the bathroom, shutting the door immediately. Malik sighed and looked up at the ceiling, before quickly pulling the covers surrounding his bed partner. "Okie-dokie, Kenji-kun, you can get out now!" He said, looking down at the naked form of the burly, well-muscled boy lying beside him. "Aaw, baby, we were only just starting…" Hands tentatively caressed Malik's arm, before the other boy pushed him away with a sudden bout of strength. Kenji fell down the top bunk, landing head-first on the floor.

Malik looked down at the burly boy, smirking slightly. Any traces of his earlier cheerful demeanor were completely gone, replaced by a glint in his amethyst eyes.

"W-what the fuck?!-"

"I said, Kenji-kun, get the hell out of here!"

"B-but--"

"_OUT!_"

"Malik--"

"_NOW, DAMNIT!"_

Kenji gave a small squeak and hurriedly put on his boxers, then picked up the rest of his clothes ( which were just beside Ryou's bedside table ) and ran out of the room. He slammed the door shut, and Malik irritably swatted the pieces of plaster that fell on his tanned chest. "Okay, Ryou, you can come out now. I swear that I won't taint your virgin eyes anymore."

The bathroom door opened to reveal a pair of annoyed brown eyes framed by silver hair. "Not funny…" He growled, but the effect was lost since he had on a huge pout. Malik chuckled lightly. 

"Fine, fine, I'm sorry, Ryou."

"You're forgiven." Ryou's eyes softened. "Who was that guy anyway?"

"Oh, him…" Malik scratched his head with one hand, while tapping his lip with the other. "Well, that was Ishino Kenji. You know, the guy one year level above us who always sort of bullies us around."

Ryou's eyes almost popped out of its sockets. "Him?!"

"Uhh… yeah. So?"

"So?!" Ryou stalked towards Malik, disbelief written all over his fair face. "Malik, he just called you a fag-whore yesterday. Plus, he almost punched you last week." 

" 'Almost' being the key word there, my friend. He just adores my perfect face too much to even think about giving it a black eye." To emphasize his point, Malik propped his chin on both hands and blinked cutely at Ryou. The other boy below sighed heavily. "Malik, you're the only person I know who sleeps with the people who bully him. Don't you know that that's absolutely twisted?"

The blond shrugged carelessly. "He's all bark and no bite. You've got absolutely nothing to worry about him. Besides…" Malik's lips twisted into another dark smile. "I just threw him out…I suspect that it's a huge blow to the poor guy's inflated ego."

"So, you've broken up?"

Malik paused in thought, then nodded once. "I guess. I mean, it wasn't even a real relationship to begin with. He just gave killer blowjobs." At this, Malik smiled like a child in a candy store and giggled. "Now, _that's _something I'll always remember him by: The guy who always gave me blow-your-mind blowjobs."

Ryou buried his face into his hands as he felt the heated blush coming back to his cheeks. "I did _not _need to know that."

"Sorry, Ryou."

"Just get dressed, and we'll see about that 'sorry'."

^^^^^^^^^^

"Hey, Ryou…"

"What is it, Malik? I'm trying to do my research paper, incase you didn't notice."

"Oi, chill! I was just gonna ask if you wanted to do something tonight."

Ryou looked up from where he was typing on his laptop and turned to face Malik. The other boy was currently sitting at the small dressing table that they shared, running a brush through his lustrous blond hair. Ryou rolled his eyes and went back to his work, but not before muttering to himself that Malik was probably the vainest person in the whole world.

"So? You wanna go out to a club?"

Without taking his eyes off the glowing screen of his laptop, Ryou replied "Malik, we have a lot of things to do, papers to finish… I can't believe you'd want to go man-hunting at this time. Besides, it's already 10 p.m."

Malik momentarily paused in his brushing, pouting at his reflection in the mirror. "Who said I was gonna go man-hunting? I just want a few drinks, maybe a little dancing…"

"If you want drinks, there's still some coke and water in the fridge. You can turn on the radio and dance, if you want. I won't mind… just not in the nude, okay?"

Malik growled in frustration as he threw the brush across the room, missing Ryou and his laptop by an inch. Crossing his tanned arms across his chest and giving the mirror a haughty look, he said "But I want wine, cocktails and tequila! And I don't want to dance alone! Besides, the radio always plays cheesy Britney songs." The haughty look disappeared, to be replaced by desperation etched on Malik's face. "Please, Ryou! I'm really, really bored!" He turned away from the mirror to come face to face with Ryou's backside.

Ryou paused in his typing and faced Malik, weariness and a trace of annoyance in his fair face. "If you really want to go clubbing, ask Jou and Seto, or Yugi, or one of your bazillion boyfriends to go with you. It doesn't have to be me, you know."

Malik quickly shook his head furiously, and walked over to Ryou. "No, no, no! It _has _to be you!"

Ryou frowned, not understanding. "Why?"

Malik put a hand on Ryou's shoulder, leaning over him and pinning him to the chair, while the other hand worked on saving the file and shutting down the laptop. Ryou yelped, releasing himself from Malik's grasp. "I was just about to type one more page! _One more page_! Then you had to go and shut it down!" Ryou glared heatedly at the blond.

Said blond snorted and said "Oh, that can wait until tomorrow."

"No, it can't!"

"Yes. It. Can." Malik enunciated every word, like he was talking to some pre-schooler. Ryou suddenly felt deeply insulted. "Now get your lazy ass up and going, because we are going to the clu-ub!" He yelled in glee, pumping a fist into the air.

"Is there absolutely no way I can get myself out of this?"

A cheerful answer of "Nope, not a chance!" was what Ryou heard. The fair-haired boy sighed, slumping down in his seat in resignation.

"Why do I always let you drag me into these things?"

"Aaw, Ryou-kins, we've only gone clubbing once, on my sixteenth birthday. Remember what happened then?" Malik's smile turned wicked. "I met this really hot redhead there—"

"Spare me the gory details, please." Ryou said, slumping even further in his chair. "And besides, you got me drunk!" He winced at the memory, not really wanting to reminisce about those times ever again.

"Oh, yeah… I remember that me and this other guy carried you all the way here to our dorm." Suddenly, Malik giggled, putting a hand in front of his mouth. "That was fun!"

"Yeah, imagine the _fun_ I had when I woke the next morning with the biggest hangover this side of Japan, and then I find out that two naked guys are lying next to me, and one is even draped all over me!" Ryou said sarcastically, rolling his eyes and thinking that Malik must be insane… really insane.

Ignoring his friend's none-too-subtle comments about the 'fun' he had, Malik patted him on the shoulder in a show of mock-sympathy. "I know you try so hard to preserve your virginity, Ryou. But that's going to end tonight, once and for all!" Malik looked up with a determined ( read: scary ) look on his face.

Ryou flushed a bit, then smiled slightly at his friend's dramatics, and stood up. "Let's just get this over with."

Malik blinked at him, caught by surprise. "Eh?"

"What are we going to wear? T-shirt? Jeans?"

"That's the spirit, Ryou!" Malik whooped for joy and caught Ryou's wrist in his own. He started dragging the other boy to their shared closet with renewed vigor.

…

"Who said you can wear a t-shirt to a club?"

^^^^^^^^^^

"I don't think this is such a good idea, Malik…" Ryou said warily, as he glanced up at the glowing neon sign, announcing the club's name to the whole world. Apparently, "The psychedelic monkey" was most definitely _not _a safe club to be in, especially at 11:30 p.m. Who knew who could be there? Druggies, prostitutes, strippers, robbers, murderers…Ryou shivered at the thought. Oh, he really wanted to get out of there.

"Ryou, sweetie, you're talking nonsense again." Malik chided playfully, waggling his index finger back in forth in Ryou's face.

Ryou swiftly caught the tanned boy's finger. "Malik…"

"Nobody likes a worrywart, okay? Jeeze, it's not like we're going to be gang-raped in here. Just relax for once!"

Ryou looked down guiltily, large brown eyes sparkling. "I'm sorry, Malik. I guess all that workload has been getting to my head."

Malik's eyes softened at the sight of his innocent friend and smiled, putting an arm around Ryou's mesh-clad shoulder. "Nah, don't worry about it. We're here to have fun, not get each other into a guilt-trip. What are friends for, anyway, ne?"

The fair-skinned boy nodded, and quickly hugged Malik, putting both arms around his waist, which the other boy returned in kind. It was only a few seconds after their embrace, that they noticed that they were already in front of the line. The bouncer coughed loudly, interrupting the sweet moment.

"New boytoy, Malik?"

Ryou's jaw almost fell to the ground in surprise, while Malik only grinned. "Nope. This one's my best friend. And you know very well, Akira-san, that having sex with your best friend always destroys the friendship one way or another."

The bouncer, Akira, nodded like a wise, old sage, agreeing completely with Malik. Ryou felt very helpless as he stared at the bouncer and at his best friend, who was sporting a huge grin on his face.

Akira stared in amusement at the silk hugging Ryou in all the right places, and the almost half-naked Malik, who in direct contrast to the more conservative Ryou, was dressed in a silver mesh shirt and red hotpants. "Oh, you two are gonna get a lot of attention here tonight…" He muttered to them, winking slyly.

"So, are we in or what?" Malik demanded impatiently.

"Yeah, yeah, get in, you little brats." Akira pushed both of them inside, and Ryou immediately heard the pounding of the loud techno music ringing in his ears.

Malik immediately started moving his hips to the beat. Ryou sighed, and hoped Malik would hear his question despite of all the noise. "How did you know the bouncer?"

Dancing with his eyes closed, Malik cracked open one bright amethyst eye and practically yelled back at Ryou. "What?!?!"

Ryou leaned in closer and repeated himself, yelling with a little more volume than before. "How did you know the bouncer?!"

Malik stopped dancing for a moment to scratch the back of his head. "Well, I sort of bribed him—"

Ryou gasped, chocolate eyes wide with disbelief. "Y-you had sex with him? I thought that you didn't go for those types…"

Malik now stared at _him _with disbelief. He blanched in visible disgust, scrunching his nose. "Eew, no! Ryou, give me a little more credit than that! You're not letting me finish! Look, I told him that I'd get him together with the girl who's always singing during Fridays, and I did. Now he owes me bigtime." He gave an embarrassed Ryou a triumphant look. "There, are you satisfied?"

Wordlessly, Ryou nodded, too dumbstruck at the moment to actually say anything coherent.

"Well, if you're through with your goldfish act, I'm gonna go dancing, okay? If you want to dance, you'll know where to find me."

"Right… attached to the hip of some poor, handsome fellow?"

"Bingo!" Malik grinned excitedly, already turning his vision on to the dance floor to scout for possible 'victims'. He gave a barely suppressed squeal when he presumably spotted someone worthy of his attentions, and rushed towards the dance floor, raising his arms and moving to the beat of the music. 

Smiling slightly, Ryou shook his head, feeling elated for his friend. He knew of Malik's not-so-happy family life, and in the past his father beat him endlessly. His mother took his elder sister Isis away when he was only seven years old. It was probably why he was starved of love, and always wanted someone beside him. Of course, Malik was beautiful, and people kept flocking to him, wanting to oblige his need for physical intimacy. It was why Ryou was worried for him, because one of Malik's fatal flaws was his fear of commitment…

"At this point, he might never find real love…" He muttered to himself, his earlier feeling of joy for his friend washed away with sudden fear. He then spotted the bar on his left and walked over to it. Seeing a new customer, the bartender graciously attended to him.

"What'll it be, sir?"

Ryou looked up suddenly, and blinked. "Oh, uhm… I'll have a coke please."

The bartender gave him a strange look, but promptly did as he was told to.

Ryou took a glimpse at the happenings on the dance floor, and felt amused and disturbed at the same time as he watched another body grind itself onto Malik's backside. His blond friend opened his mouth in obvious ecstasy, and Ryou turned away, blushing. 

"I turn my back on him for a few seconds and he already finds someone…" He shook his head slowly.

Without warning, another person sat next to Ryou, who didn't take much of notice it. The other customer banged his fist down at the table. "Oi, bar-keep! Bring me a glass of vodka! And make it snappy!" Without even looking, Ryou concluded that the person beside him was male—and a very aggressive one, at that.

The bartender returned and set the coke in front of Ryou calmly. Again, the man beside Ryou pounded his fist down. "Oi! Are you deaf or what? I said, bring me vodka! Is this what you call service?!"

Blankly, the bartender turned to face the man. Ryou saw at the corner of his eyes that the man's calm face broke, and turned panicked. "Y-yes sir, right away, sir." He hurriedly rushed to the glass cases to get the vodka.

Closing his eyes, Ryou sipped his coke, seemingly not disturbed. He didn't know what came over him, when suddenly he murmured "You shouldn't have been so rude, you know."

The man turned to him, and Ryou heard a low growl. "What gives you the right to say that? Do you even know who I am?"

Ryou set down his drink, turning sideways to face the man…

… and saw a vision of silver, chocolate and black swimming before him, creating an unforgettable masterpiece etched on his mind.

^^^^^^^^^^

Well, that's the first one. I focused a lot on Ryou and Malik's relationship first, but next we'll have the good stuff. (a.k.a. the yaoi stuff ) and plot-building. I can tell this is gonna be a long, complicated one. Incase you're wondering, this is **not **a supernatural fic, so no vampire Bakura or whatever, okay? Also, Yami, Yugi and the others are going to appear very, very soon. So, if you guys want another chapter, please review! ^__^ 

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	2. Who played with fire

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DISCLAIMER: I always forget these darn things…O__o Anyway, Yugi-oh and all its characters belong to Kazuki Takahashi. * glares at creepy men in Armani suits * There! I said it! You guys happy now?!

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WARNINGS: This chapter has some foul language courtesy of Bakura…^^

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NOTES: I am so happy that the response to the first chapter has been very positive. Thank you very, very much. * blows kisses * Also, a huge **thank you **goes out to **Haru-chan**, who informed me of the difference between 'coke' ( the drug ) and "Coke" ( the drink ). Expect a bit of editing in that part. Anyway, this chapter is for all of you reviewers! Enjoy!

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COME UNDONE: Who played with fire

Ryou gulped, tightening his hold on the Coke can. Apparently, the guy beside him, whoever he was, was very pissed. "Aside from being drop-dead gorgeous, of course." His mind supplied as an afterthought. "Oh-kay, where did _that _come from…" Ryou mentally scolded himself for thinking so lewdly in the face of ( possible ) danger.

"But it's the truth." His mind, the hentai part, replied. Ryou blinked. He wasn't aware that his mind even _had _a hentai part. Besides, he had concluded long ago that having imprints of Malik having sex with random people inside his brain was not necessarily perverted. It was merely accidental that it got there.

"Come on, look at him…He's seething and it's making him look _oh-so-sexy_." His subconscious whispered. Ryou wanted to smack his subconscious upside the head. "His seething is directed at _me_, you stupid… thing."

Ryou decided that he was totally losing it.

His train of thought was cut when the other man faced away from him with a loud "Ch'… Of course you don't know who I am."

Again, Ryou did not know what came over him when he answered, "Why? Am I supposed to?" After that statement, Ryou made a mental note to bash his head into a wall first thing in the morning.

The other man glanced up at him sharply, dark amber eyes glinting. "Playing smart now, are we, pretty boy?" The man leaned in closer, and Ryou had a good look of his spiky, silver hair. Also, he had a good smell of the musky scent floating around him, mixed with the bitter aroma of vodka.

"Let me tell you something. It ain't gonna do any good for you if you play around with people like us." The man smirked at Ryou, showing off a pair of sharpened fang teeth. "You don't want to get involved in our shit, so back off, pretty boy."

Ryou couldn't help but huff indignantly. " I have a name, you know."

The man looked at him for a long moment, seemingly startled. This was probably the first time someone really stood up to him. Then to Ryou's surprise, the man chuckled at him. "Well, what is it? Honeycomb? Precious? Sweet thing?"

Ryou gritted his teeth. "My name is Ryou, and you have absolutely no right to call me 'sweet thing'! I'm not an object!"

"Well, aren't you the feisty one?" He purred, surprising Ryou. He carefully took Ryou's face in his hands, running a callous thumb over the boy's smooth cheek. Ryou couldn't help but lean into the other's touch. He didn't quite know what was drawing him to this man's touch, but he couldn't resist him. And he wanted it that way.

"I always go for the feisty, beautiful ones such as yourself." The man said, his smirk widening slightly. "You should be thankful."

"At least tell me who you are." Ryou murmured, his gaze going dreamy.

"The name's Bakura. And that's not all you're getting from me." Ryou barely registered that sentence when the man's,--no, Bakura's—lips settled on his own. Ryou's eyes went shut as he let Bakura claim his lips in a close-mouthed kiss. Bakura's arms encircled around Ryou's waist, holding him firmly. Then, without warning, Bakura forcefully pried his lips open, his tongue trying to gain access inside. 

It suddenly occurred to Ryou that he was letting a stranger claim his first kiss. The guy could be a rapist or a murderer, for all he knew.

Bakura, on the other hand, was getting a tad frustrated at the boy in his arms. Why wasn't he responding as enthusiastically as he had hoped? His past lovers always told him that his kisses were bound to make anyone melt into a puddle. But this boy was uncharacteristically cold in his response. He was sure that Ryou was attracted to him…

__

Slap

Bakura definitely did not see that coming.

Said young man growled as he clutched his left cheek. "Damn, this boy could hit…" He thought as he felt the welt forming. "What the fuck was that for?!" He demanded, glaring dangerously at Ryou.

Ryou felt a bit of sweat trickling down his forehead as he found himself under Bakura's heated glare. "You kissed me…" He trailed off. "…But I don't even know you."

'"Oh, so you wanna know more about me? Well, I'm Hidomu Bakura, aged 19, bastard child of some no-good parents, ex-something. And you don't wanna find out what that something is." Bakura said all of this in a very hurried, angry manner. It became clear to Ryou that the other boy ( not man, as he previously thought ) was not very pleased with him at the moment.

"I-I'm sorry if I offended you—"

"Offended me? _Offended me?_ Damn right you did!" Bakura screamed at him. Ryou winced, hunching slightly.

For some reason that he couldn't comprehend, Bakura was truly drawn to this boy. And he couldn't help but say something to make Ryou feel even slightly better after his outburst.

'"Yeah, I guess you're right. I don't know you either, and I don't know what the hell came over me when I kissed you. I guess I'm… sorry?" Bakura couldn't believe himself. Someone like him _never _apologized to anybody, no matter what his sin was, and yet here he was, saying sorry to some random pretty boy…

Instead of responding verbally, Ryou just gave him a look that he couldn't really read, and nodded slowly at him. "What the hell could that possibly mean?… And hell, why the fuck am I wasting my time trying to understand that?" Bakura shook his head to clear his thoughts.

"So, Bakura-kun… what brings you here at this time?"

This was going to be a _long _night.

^^^^^^^^^^

"Hey, baby, wanna dance with me?"

Malik cracked an eye open and momentarily paused in his solo-dancing. Scanning the person's erm, _assets, _he didn't feel the need to oblige the guy's request. He grimaced in reply and shook his head at the other boy. "Sorry, _baby_" Malik mocked. "But this bod's already taken."

The guy frowned. "Oh yeah? If you're taken, then why do you switch dance partners every five minutes?"

"Aaw, I'm flattered that you observe my every move, but I don't entertain stalkers."

"You didn't answer my question!"

Malik sighed mentally. Damn persistent dog. "My boyfriend and I are in a very open relationship."

"If that's the case, maybe your boyfriend wouldn't mind me being with you for a few minutes…" The guy leered at him, looking at him like he was a piece of juicy meat.

Suddenly, an arm wrapped around Malik's waist, pulling him close to a firm, well-muscled chest. "This guy bothering you?" Malik glanced up to find himself looking into a pair of captivating dark red-purplish eyes framed with dark blond hair. "Wow…" Malik thought, unconsciously relaxing into the other boy's hold. Seeing that he was getting no response, the boy holding him leaned down and whispered into Malik's ear.

"Play along if you want to get rid of this pest."

A bit dazedly, Malik nodded. He put both of his tanned arms around the boy's neck, and looked back at the other guy, daring him to say something.

Malik was a bit surprised to see that the guy's face had turned a rather unflattering shade of ghostly white. "H-H-He's your b-boyfriend?" Mr. Almost-like-a-ghost pointed a shaky finger towards the boy protectively holding Malik. 

"You got a problem with that?"

"No! Not at all, sir!" He said hastily, then spun around on his heels and ran off to the door, exiting the club as fast as humanly possible.

Malik chuckled. "I think this is the first time I saw anyone run that fast without having their pants on fire."

"Cowards are like that. It's their special ability." Malik almost jumped in surprise. But then he remembered that he _did _have someone holding him at the moment. Not to mention that that someone just saved his ass.

"Are you okay?" He asked almost inaudibly, but Malik still heard him. Thankfully, the DJ had mellowed the techno music a bit, so he was able to hear other people voices more clearly now. "Y-yeah… thanks for asking. And thanks for saving my hide, Mr…"

"Osiris. But you can call me Mariku."

Malik beamed up at the other boy, noticing for the first time how good-looking Mariku was. "Damn, you are _hot_." Malik thought, barely controlling himself from drooling. Instead he asked, "How could I repay you for your act of kindness, Mariku-san?" in the most inviting tone he could muster. 

The corner of Mariku's lips quirked upwards as his free hand moved south, feeling Malik's shapely rear through the thin fabric of the hotpants. 

"I've got ideas…"

Malik giggled softly. "Guess I really should use that bedroom voice more often…" He thought to himself as Mariku pushed him towards a nearby wall.

^^^^^^^^^^

The moment that Ryou had asked what he was doing in the club at such a time, his cell phone rang. Bakura didn't know whether to curse or be thankful, but he turned away from Ryou and answered it anyway. 

"Moshi-moshi?"

"Bakura? That you?"

"Yeah. What the hell do you want now, pharaoh?" He said the name 'pharaoh' as if it were poison, intriguing Ryou who was still beside him.

Bakura heard a loud, exasperated sigh from the other line. "Look, we've got a bit of a problem. I need you here right now."

"Can't you see I'm busy?" The spiky-haired boy hissed, gripping the cell phone tighter.

"Yes, I can see that from up here." 

Bakura discreetly brought his gaze towards the second floor of the club, where the form of another boy sitting on what appeared to be a throne-like seat could be seen. The shadows covered his face, but anyone looking could easily notice the peculiarly shaped hair, not to mention the load of golden jewelry glinting against the boy's skin. Bakura stood up from his seat, walking a few steps away from Ryou.

"Cut with the voyeurism crap, pharaoh. What's the problem?"

"We have another drug-related situation in here. To top it off, they almost got Yugi." The "pharaoh's" voice was strained with worry.

"So? What do I care about your little pet?"

"Bakura, this isn't just about Yugi anymore. I know how much you hate drugs—"

"Yeah, especially since I used to be a drug lord myself." Bakura spoke with spite, bitterness and obvious regret. "Up until now, they're still looking for me, and you know it. It might be them who's trying to harm your pet."

"That's why I need you up here. Let's investigate this together."

"You called Mariku already?"

"I tried to. But its either his phone's not turned on, or he can't hear it because of all the noise. You better go look for him."

Bakura frowned. " Just call him later. I'll be there in a moment." With that, he pressed the 'end call' option and put his cell phone back onto his shirt pocket. He turned back to the table and decided to say goodbye to Ryou before he went up to meet with the "pharaoh".

"You're going so soon?" Well, Ryou beat him to whatever he was planning to say, so might as well answer.

"Yeah. I have… business to attend to."

"Ne, Bakura-kun… maybe I could see you again?"

Bakura blinked, frowning. Then he turned away. "Not likely."

Ryou hung his head, strangely feeling a bit hurt. "Oh. Okay, then."

"Well, so much for a proper goodbye." Bakura thought, as he went up the stairs leading to the second floor, not even sparing a glance back at Ryou.

Still, he couldn't help but feel that somehow, someway, he would meet Ryou again. He didn't know how. He just knew.

^^^^^^^^^^

"Oh, Ryou! I had the most incredible time last night! Have I told you about this guy I met—"

"Yes, Malik, you've already told me about him. For about twenty times."

"Oh, okay." Malik's cheerful spirit didn't seem to dampen a bit even as he heard Ryou's weary voice. "How about you, sweetie? Did you meet someone?"

Ryou's hands, which were currently trying to knot the tie of his school uniform in front of their vanity mirror, suddenly froze. "No… I didn't meet anyone. Guess your mission for me to be 'de-flowered', as you so eloquently put it, is a failure. Ho-hum." Needless to say, he was startled out of his wits, when he found Malik standing beside him, grinning slyly.

"W-what?" Ryou was almost afraid to ask.

If possible, Malik's grin got even wider.

Scratch that thought. Ryou _was _afraid to ask. But it was already too late.

"I know that tone, Ryou. And I sure as hell _know _that you even kissed someone yesternight."

The blush on Ryou's cheeks gave it all away. He didn't need to speak, but he still did, anyway. "How?…"

"You didn't think I was only dancing, did you?" Malik smirked, putting a hand on his hip. "I'm a naturally observant person, Ryou. And I thought you knew me." He pretended to sniff, rubbing a hand through his eyelids, pretending to wipe away imaginary tears.

"You're all grown up, Ryou-kins." Malik pretended to choke on a sob, doing so quite believably. Ryou rolled his eyes in response.

"Stop wasting your acting skills on me, Malik. We have to get to class." Ryou sounded very tired as he picked up his student's briefcase, and went to stand by the door to wait for Malik.

"You always spoil my fun, Ryou." Malik said, sticking his tongue out before picking up his own briefcase.

"If that's what it takes to whip you into shape…"

"Ooh, Kinky, Ryou."

A loud, exasperated sigh. "Forget I ever said it. Come on. Maybe you'll find other more interesting things today."

"Hope so. Or else I'll stick to teasing you about that newfound whip fetish of yours…"

"Ma-lik…"

"Kidding, Ryou, kidding."

^^^^^^^^^^

Well, that was the second one! ^__^ I promise that all the responses to the reviewers will be in the next chapter. Please tell me if I should really still continue this! Thanks in advance!

Reviews are always appreciated!

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	3. And unknowingly got themselves

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DISCLAIMER: God, why do I have to always start with these damn things…* curses * Anyway, Yugi-oh and all its characters belong to Kazuki Takahashi. If us yaoi fangirls actually owned the thing, well…* smirks * ^__^

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NOTE/S: I am so pleasantly shocked to find out that this story has gotten so much positive reviews over the last few days. Thank you so much! You guys rock! Also, special mention goes out to **corn3ts** for being my inspiration, and to **DreamingChild** for being such a faithful reviewer. * glomps * Well, this story is gonna get pretty complicated soon, so you all better watch out for that. Enjoy!

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COME UNDONE: And unknowingly got themselves

"Eugh. I _so _hate this crappy uniform." Malik grumbled loudly, fingering the black tie around his pristine white uniform's collar. Next, he pretended to dust off some imaginary dirt on his black slacks. Ryou, who was walking beside him, sighed wearily.

"Malik, there is absolutely no reason to hate our uniform. It's better than some of those blazers that the other schools make their students wear."

"Who asked for your opinion?" Malik bit back quite nastily. "And besides, it makes me look fat and unattractive." His voice became vaguely pained as his free hand tried to smoothen out the creases of the uniform, to no avail.

Realizing that he was _never _in a million years going to win in this kind of argument with his figure and fashion-conscious best friend, Ryou walked a few steps faster and reached the classroom door earlier than the other boy. Looking around, he wasn't surprised to find out that only three people were currently in the room, namely Yugi Mutou, Seto Kaiba and Katsuya Jounouchi. It was, after all, still ten minutes until the first bell would ring. He smiled slightly, waving at the three.

"Good morning, Yugi-kun, Kaiba-san, Jou-kun."

Yugi, a rather petite boy with the strangest tri-colored hair and the cutest indigo eyes, waved back at him cheerily, saying "Good morning, Ryou-kun!". Jou, a sort of foreign-mixed Japanese beauty, with his sunshine blond tresses and dark eyes, smiled at him and copied Yugi's actions. Seto, a handsome brunette billionaire ( why he chose to study at a middle-class private school, he had no idea ) acknowledged him with a single nod.

Out of the three of them, Ryou had always been most fond of Yugi. His smiles ( and hair ) always managed to cheer the silver-haired boy up. Lately though, Yugi seemed to be getting these weird black marks under his eyes, and red spots on various sides of his neck. Malik, ever the malicious one, suspected those to be eyebugs from lack of sleep ( read: too much dancing of the horizontal mambo ) and the red marks to be love bites from a certain special someone. But Ryou was quick to disprove that theory, since it didn't seem that Yugi was currently seeing someone.

Or maybe he was…

But the idea of Yugi dating _anyone_ was absurd. Yugi was so little, and looked so innocent…

"Oi, Ryou, you spaced out or something?" The rambunctious bass that was Jou's voice reached his ears. Said boy blinked, suddenly feeling a bit disoriented, and slowly shook his head.

"Sorry. I was just… thinking."

"Is the blond slut going to be absent today?" Seto's calm tenor pushed into his mind, grinding his thoughts to a sudden halt.

"Hey, I'm right here, you dolt!" Jou screamed indignantly.

"I was talking about the _other _blond slut, koinu." Seto narrowed his eyes at Jou, obviously not pleased with being called a dolt.

Jou's cheeks turned red still. "I'm not your damn dog, so stop calling me that… Wait, are you implying that I'm a slut, Seto?" He ground out, a fist clenching at his side.

Seto smirked. "Only for me you are."

Jou rolled his eyes. "Whatever, genius."

"Malik? Absent? What're you talking about? Isn't he… here?" Ryou interrupted, understanding that Seto was talking about Malik. He trailed off, looking around the room and realizing for the first time that Malik wasn't there with them. "Where could he possibly run off to? We were walking together, for God's sake!" He said, throwing both arms into the air and looking exasperatedly at the ceiling wall as if to ask "Why me?"

As if on cue, Malik came rushing into the room, muttering profuse apologies under his breath. He looked up, then blinked as he saw the four people currently inside the room. "Uhh… Kaitou-sensei not here yet?"

" 'Fraid so, Ishtar." Jou said, smiling amusedly.

"Damnit! I said sorry for nothing!" Yugi and Jou laughed, Seto shook his head and Ryou frowned disapprovingly. 

"Malik, what took you so long?"

The lavender-eyed boy wrinkled his nose, running a hand through his silky, pale blond hair. "Ah, I ran into Kenji-kun. He wanted to sleep with me again, I think." At this, he flipped his hair back, snorting. "Like I'd ever let him do me again. I can find other guys who can do better blowjobs than him. Like the one I met—"

Yugi blushed, as did Jou. Seto looked for all the world like an alien who just landed on Earth. Ryou felt his cheeks turning into a fine shade of cherry red that matched Yugi and Jou's own.

"What? Why are you guys looking at me like that?"

"We don't need information about your supposedly exciting sex life, slut." Seto threw back at him teasingly.

"Oh, yes, I suppose an asshole such as yourself wouldn't find the need to." 

"Okay, break it up, you guys." Yugi interjected. "Any minute now, the bell's gonna ring, and our classmates are going to come swarming in here." True to his words, the bell did ring after just a few seconds, and their classmates did come in hurriedly in disheveled lines.

They all settled themselves into their designated seats, taking out their Geometry books. Any minute now, their teacher was going to come in, and they all straightened their backs, preparing.

Any minute now…

"What the hell is taking the old man so long?" Malik whispered to Ryou, who was sitting beside him.

"Shut up and wait." Seto, who was unfortunately on Malik's other side, snapped.

Ten minutes passed. They still didn't have any teacher. Some of their classmates had already been goofing around, flying paper airplanes and throwing some spitballs at each other's backs. In the middle of all the action though, they all heard heavy footsteps that could only belong to the principal. In the blink of an eye, all traces of play were hidden, and only work was left.

The principal entered the room stiffly, his glass-hidden eyes flitting around the room in observation. He turned his head towards the door and gestured for another one to come inside. Needless to say, everyone was more than surprised that it wasn't their middle-aged teacher Kaitou-sensei, but an _extremely drop-dead gorgeous _young man who was possibly only a few years older than them.

No one noticed Yugi drop his pen or his jaw work downwards. No one noticed it since they were too busy gaping at the newcomer.

"He looks a lot like Yugi-kun…" Ryou murmured, taking note of the spiky, golden blond bangs framing a raven black mane tipped with specks of dark red. The eyes though were more well-defined and piercing with its dark ruby color and slanted shape. And his body was, to say the least, a _lot _more well-developed than Yugi's. Let's just say that everyone was staring and… yeah. You get the idea.

"He does _not _look like Yugi! Yugi is a little pipsqueak! Do _you _think that this gorgeous specimen of manhood is a pipsqueak? I don't think so!" Malik hissed back.

Ryou frowned, giving Malik an 'are-you-blind-or-just-stupid' look. "You can't deny the resemblance, though."

"It's only the hair! And a little bit of the face and eyes, but other than that, they're as different as night and day! Good and Evil! Batman and Robin!"

Ryou rolled his eyes, giving up. Malik's logic was just too _perfect_ to argue with.

To top it off, they all noticed that the teacher was wearing tight, black tank top under his leather jacket. Almost more than half of the class suddenly squirmed in their seats, including Malik and Ryou.

The principal cleared his throat. "I'm afraid that your teacher, Makoto Kaitou, has transferred year levels due to the sudden absence of the sophomore Algebra teacher. So, we have here a new student-teacher from the prestigious Tokyo University to take over." The class suddenly murmured amongst themselves. Everyone knew that Tokyo University only handled the best of the best, and a student-teacher this young was almost unusual.

"He to be some sorta genius or something. Like you, Seto." Jou remarked, glancing sharply at the brunette beside him.

"Hn."

"Introduce yourself please." The principal said to the new teacher, who nodded.

"Hello, everyone. I'm Yami Nahoshi, and I'll be your teacher until Kaitou-san comes back." He greeted them in a deep, sexy baritone, smiling widely. "I hope we'll all get along well." After that, the principal said something to Yami, and left. After that, he turned back to them.

Ryou noticed that Yami-sensei glanced pointedly at Yugi's direction, who was just beside Jou. He also noted the pale shade of Yugi's face, and the eyes that were widened into indefinite proportions. Ryou glanced back at Yami-sensei, and was a bit surprised to see the obvious worry in his dark ruby eyes. Did Yami-sensei and Yugi know each other?…

^^^^^^^^^^

"Okay, that's it for distinguishing and measuring planes. Tomorrow, we'll have a quiz, and on Wednesday we'll have a new lesson on triangles. Is everyone clear on that?"

"Crystal." The class responded unanimously, except for Yugi. Yami chuckled and waved good bye to all of them as they exited. Yugi was the last one in line, but before he could follow after Ryou and the others…

"Mutou-san. Could I see you for a moment?"

Jou looked back at Yugi with sympathy all over his face. "Looks like you've got a case with sensei. You want us to wait for you here?"

Yugi shook his head. "No, go on ahead. I'll catch up with you guys later." Everyone nodded in reply and took off to the cafeteria. Yugi sighed and closed the door to the class room, looking back at Yami who was sitting comfortably on top of the table.

"Yami."

"Yugi."

A sigh escaped from the smaller boy's lips. "What are you doing here?"

Yami shrugged carelessly. "I… just wanted to see you."

Yugi looked at him for a long moment. "That's not it, Yami. You want to stand guard, incase someone tries to shove drugs down my throat yet again."

Yami stared back at him, then nodded in reply. "I have people telling me that some of the notorious drug-pushers are actually in this school."

Yugi paled. "W-what? Some of them are actually _in _here?" Yami nodded grimly. "Are they the ones who're after you and Bakura-kun?"

"Probably. And since some of them know who you are, too, you're possibly in danger as well."

Yugi was somewhat annoyed at Yami's casual manner of speaking, like the matter at hand wasn't that serious at all. He narrowed his eyes at the older boy. "Then why exactly are you here? And don't give me that 'I want to protect you' crap. You know I can take care of myself!" Yugi half-shrieked, his voice raising a to a pitch.

Yami came down from his seat on the table and went to Yugi, who stared up at him with probing eyes. "I know you can take care of yourself, but then if you don't want me to give you my 'I want to protect you' crap, what else can I say?" Yami then put both of his lean, wiry arms around Yugi's backside and rested his forehead against Yugi's own. "I don't want to risk losing you…"

Yugi hesitated a bit before encasing his arms around Yami's neck as well. "I remember what they almost did to me, Yami. If you hadn't been there, if you hadn't saved me…" Yugi's words halted, as his voice cracked. He suddenly couldn't control the tears that came out from his eyelids, travelling a slow, tortuous path down to his cheeks. Yami pulled back a bit from their embrace and looked down at Yugi. His sweet, loving Yugi, who was in agony at that very moment.

Yami raised a hand and slowly wiped away Yugi's tears.

"Don't cry, airen, love…"

"I'm sorry for being such a coward, Yami…"

"You are not a coward, Yugi. You're the bravest person I have ever had the privilege of knowing." Yami smiled at him, cupping the other's cheek. "You saved me, too. Didn't you know?"

"Saved you? When have I ever saved you? You're always the one saving me."

Yami shook his head. "You saved me from death a lot of times by simply being there. If it hadn't been for you, I'd have to be in hell right now, atoning for my numerous sins."

"I'm… your reason for living?"

"Yes. And nothing or no one else could ever match your worth." Before Yugi could say something in return, Yami brought himself down, and kissed Yugi long and hard, almost desperately.

They didn't need any more words after that.

^^^^^^^^^^

"Finally, this day has come to an end!" Malik whooped in triumph, throwing himself headfirst onto the lower side of the bunk bed, which happened to be Ryou's. The bed squeaked as Malik bounced. One would think that he did this very often with a different kind of bouncing, if you get my drift.

"Go and destroy your own bed, Ishtar." Ryou said, putting the student's briefcase down on his desk.

Before the blond could reply with a snarky comment of his own, someone knocked on the door. "Coming, coming…" Ryou called out. He opened the door and was surprised to see the Coordinator for Student Affairs standing outside.

"Mizuki-sensei?…" He murmured, confused.

"Takahashi-san." The old woman replied in kind, smiling at him. Suddenly, she held out an envelope and gently thrust it towards Ryou. "I have here a letter that came earlier today, and it has your name on it."

Ryou blinked, then took the letter from her. "Thank you, sensei." The woman nodded before Ryou closed the door. He stared at the letter in his hand, flipping it so he could see who sent it.

"Who's it from, Ryou?" Malik asked, getting up from the bed and walking towards the other boy.

Ryou sat down on his swivel chair, and Malik leaned over his shoulder. "It's from tousan…" He mumbled absently, carefully tearing out the envelope to take out the letter inside. He unfolded it, and began to read.

He meticulously scanned the letter, noting that his father talked about almost everything. His continuous research in Egypt, his sister Amane's condition in that all-girls boarding school she went to, how his uncles, aunts and cousins were… then he reached the last part of the letter, which held a rather depressing subject. It said that the company sponsoring their archaeological dig recently underwent a bankrupt, and his father's money was growing scarce by the day. His allowance would be lessened by more than half…

And he had to work for his tuition fee or else drop-out of school. 

Ryou set down the letter, staring blankly at the wall in front. He suddenly felt scared. "I've never worked before… what if I mess up?" He thought to himself. Then he turned to face Malik, who was sporting a genuine look of sympathy for him.

"I guess this means you have to find some sort of part-time job, then…" Malik said softly, putting both of his arms around Ryou's shoulders, embracing him.

"I guess so…" Ryou murmured back, leaning against Malik. "Thanks for being there for me, Malik."

"Always." Malik replied, tightening his hold. 

They stayed that way for a few moments longer, until Malik suddenly blurted out an "I know where you could find a job, Ryou!"

Hope inevitably danced in Ryou's heart. "Really? Where?"

"Remember that club we went to yesterday?"

"… You've gotta be kidding me."

^^^^^^^^^^

To be continued…

This chapter had a huge Yami/Yugi fluff moment. But don't be fooled, my dears. They have a more complex relationship to be unfolded as the story goes along. This couple is more involved in this story than you may think, although they seem to be a minor one right now.

And now, a shout-out to the reviewers, just like I promised!

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Reviewers for Chapter 1:

Hitokiri Chiburi: Thanks! I'm glad you liked the first chapter! ^__^

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Haru-chan: I can't thank you enough for giving me your honest, thoughtful criticism. * tips hat and bows * I was innocent about the 'coke' thing until you mentioned it to me. ^^ As for Malik in hotpants…guess what? We share the same opinion. I guess Malik is a bit eccentric in this fic, and as much as I'd wanted him to be in leather pants, I thought it was a lot more common than the other option. As for the space, hmm… better check on that. The Stupid Microsoft Word sometimes plays with my mind…^___^ 

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Celeste Rose: Thanks! I'm pleased to know that you found the first chapter to be funny ( Let me tell you the truth. That chapter was supposed to be all angsty and everything, but the more humorous side won. ) ^^

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little-kat-girl: Your wish is my command! ( since you did command for me to continue ^^ ) * bows *

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akuryounoseiki: * blushes * Thank you for your praise. * glomps * Yeah, I _am _going to put little implications of Ryou and Malik being more-than-friends-but-not-really, but it's up to the readers if they want to interpret it as strong, affectionate friendship or something more. It goes both ways, really. =)

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Icy Wind: Well, I think cliffhangers are evil, too, but sometimes it adds spice to the story. ( of course, if it's overdone, everyone can just wring the writer's neck ) Thanks! ^__^

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SoulDreamer: Thank you! Hope you'll keep reading! ^^

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Tri: Thanks! Everyone tells me that the first one was well-written and catchy, and I hope you'll find Chapter 2 to be good as well. =3

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DreamingChild: Thank you! ^__^ You're such a faithful reviewer of mine, and no words could express the happiness I feel. Many, many thanks. ^^

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a-yolanda13: Ryou and Malik's relationship was a bit strange, if you ask me. But I'm glad you liked the way I portrayed it. Thanks!

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AngelStarFire Hikarist: * giggles * I hope so, too. Thanks! ^^

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Reviewers for Chapter 2:

little-kat-girl: You're on a sugar-high? Gah! * hides away in mom's closet * Anyway, thanks for the encouragement! ^__^ Don't get too much of Yugi's sugar stack, you never know when Yami might come after you. ( God forbid ) ^^

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DreamingChild: Yes, I'm definitely going to finish this. In fact, it's all planned out already. ^^ I know poor Ryou's probably suffering some sort of mild separation anxiety from not being able to see Bakura again ( or so he thinks ). He _will _get his revenge, I assure you. * cue evil laughter * ^^

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a-yolanda13: Yup, things really are taking shape, so you better watch out for the next one! ^__^ Thanks!

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jeti-n-San: Thank you! ^^ I'm a huge fan of B/R, too, so this story would really focus on 

the two of them a lot. The space at the bottom? * sigh * I really have to fix that…* sheepish grin * 

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Maruken: Kinky? O__o * excuse Scarlet for she is currently thinking about thoughts not suitable to children under 12 *… Anyways, thanks! ^^

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AngelStarFire Hikarist: I personally think Mariku is hotter than hell, and I'm glad we share the same opinion! ^^ Wait… * wipes drool from Hikarist's computer screen * You better take good care of the screen if you want to see what's going to happen next. Thanks so much! ^__^

In the next chapter: Malik drags a very much reluctant Ryou back to the "Psychedelic Monkey" to try to apply for a job. Ryou sees Bakura again, and the real conflict of this story arises ( finally! ). Malik gets drunk, and something happens to him, or at least, _almost _happens…Stay tuned for the next chapter of Come Undone! ^__^


	4. Into loads of trouble

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DISCLAIMER: Nope, still doesn't belong to me. * sigh *

Before we go on with business, I would just like to say… * clears throat; gets down on her knees * … that I'm really, really sorry for delaying Chapter 4 for this long! I've been hit with a severe case of the procrastination bug ( the terror that haunts authors everywhere ) and for a long while I couldn't get off my lazy ass long enough to write, but a good kick in the butt got me going again, so here I am! ^^

Anyway, I hope y' all will enjoy this next chapter. I'm having a lot of fun writing this fic, and I hope you guys would enjoy reading it as well.

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COME UNDONE: Into loads of trouble

"Malik, I would have you know that I still think that isn't one of your better ideas." Ryou stated dryly as he was dragged like a small child along the street.

"Oh, c'mon, Ryou! Don't be like that! Besides, this is for your own good."

__

"Right…" The other boy thought, wisely deciding to not actually say it out loud to his friend, who was humming some J-pop song under his breath while having a tight grip on Ryou's pale wrist.

"You know, Malik, I find it strange that you hate Britney Spears, but you actually like Hayashibara Megumi." Ryou said out of nowhere, but the blond was smart to sense trouble when it started brewing.

"Oh, boy, looks like we're gonna have another one of _those _pointless arguments again…" Malik sighed inwardly. When Ryou was pissed, he wasn't the type to actually yell and scream at you until your eardrums bled into oblivion ( that was more of Malik's style ). Oh _no_. He was more of the type who posed you a sardonic question that would trigger off your defensive debating instincts, and then you'd trade philosophic banter about a trivial subject with him until you realized your chances of losing to Ryou's _amazing _I'll-put-you-into-an-endless-guilt-trip skills were as huge as a cow.

Well, losing be damned! He was in the mood for a good fight, after all.

"Unlike Ms. Spears' pop, Hayashibara Megumi's songs actually make sense. But I suppose a classical geek like you won't understand that kind of concept now, would you?" Malik replied, smiling a bit too innocently for Ryou's liking.

Ryou glared heatedly. "And I suppose a persistent blond such as yourself would understand a concept such as 'Why-are-you-dragging-me-to-such-a-stupid-place-when-I-clearly-don't-want-to-be-there—'"

"Jeeze! God! Stop with the stupid blond jokes already!" Malik abruptly released Ryou's wrist and whirled around to face the silver-haired boy. Rage was dancing in the other boy's amethyst eyes, and one way or another, it actually scared Ryou.

"I'm sorry if my God-given hair color insults you so much, but I'm just trying to fucking help you! What is wrong with you?!"

People curiously stared at the two bickering teens, probably hoping for some sort of a fistfight to occur soon.

"Well, if it occurred to you to just _listen _to me, then you'd realize that I actually _don't _want help. I could find a job on my own, you know." Ryou replied calmly, setting off Malik's temper a few degrees higher still.

"And if you really listened to _me _then you'd realize that you could actually get a decent pay even if you worked for only a few hours in that joint!"

Now Ryou looked skeptical. "And just where did you get that information?"

Some of Malik's frustration dissipated as he grinned cheekily at Ryou. "I have my sources."

Ryou seemed to consider it for a while, but his reluctance kicked in again. "I have my reasons for not wanting to work at that club…"

"If this is your paranoia talking, I _swear _for the nth time—"

"No, no! That's not it! Really!" Ryou seemed a bit too defensive, and Malik raised an eyebrow at that small fact. The hazel-eyed boy sighed under his friend's doubtful gaze. Malik could actually be perceptive at all the wrong times. "_Part of Malik's questionable insanity, I guess…_" He thought, affirming it with the fact that Malik had downright _twisted _relationships and an even weirdertendency for mood swings at ( again ) the most inappropriate of times.

"You're getting that dazed-eyed look again! For Kami's sake, when will you stop with your suddenly-I'm-daydreaming phase?"

"Sorry." Ryou mumbled sheepishly. Now that was one bad habit of his that really needed to be remedied, he thought. It didn't really do well to think of dreams, rainbows and hell, even fairies in the middle of the bloody street and have people staring at you thinking "Oh there goes that loonybin, poor, poor psycho boy—"

"You're doing it again!" Malik gave a loud 'Auuuugh! Why do I have to get stuck with a daydreaming idiot for a best friend?' and started pulling at Ryou's wrist again.

"Let's go now before I change my mind and decide to apply you as a stripper or something."

"…What?"

^^^^^^^^^^

The walk seemed like an eternity. And Ryou thought that nothing was worse that that.

Well, apparently, he thought wrong, because this was much, _much_ worse.

"This sucks!" Malik spat out in response to the fact that he couldn't accompany his friend to the room for the interview. Ryou was highly amused by the fact that Malik actually thought that he'd do the interview with him.

But when he was standing outside the door of the club's boss, he felt himself start to sweat. As Malik eloquently asked him one day, "You don't really deal with rejection very well, do you?"…

…And he was 95% sure that he was going to be rejected. No, wait, judging from the facial expression of Yami-sensei, he was 99.9 % sure that he was going to be trashed in this interview—

Hey, wait just a minute…

Yami…sensei?

__

?!?!?!…Alarm sirens blared in Ryou's head. What in the name of all that was holy was _Yami-sensei _doing there?! And why, oh why, was he sitting in a chair that was supposed to be for the boss of the club? That meant that he was the boss…So if he was the boss, then that meant that Ryou would be answering questions from him, which would mean that his future actually depended on Yami-sensei…

His head ached. He wanted, no, _needed _to get out of there.

"Yami-sensei…"

"There's no need to call me 'sensei' in this place, Takahashi-san." Yami-sensei's deep baritone spoke out, startling poor Ryou who was having a bit of difficulty breathing at the moment.

"What… what…?" Ryou wheezed out, unable to look at Yami in the eye.

"You've come here to apply for a job, correct?" Yami calmly asked him. Ryou stared at him and nodded, wondering how he could just _be _that way.

"But sensei…" Ryou said suddenly, ignoring Yami's "Haven't I told you not to call me sensei in here?"

"This is a _club_. You're a _teacher_. You can't just… just go around owning clubs! I'm pretty sure there has to be some school rule against this!"

"Not really. If you've read the handbook well, you'd notice that there really isn't anything in it that says that we teachers can't get other jobs."

Ryou couldn't say anything to that.

Yami drummed his fingers on his desk as he leaned back on his swivel chair. "So, what job would you like? A Bartender perhaps? Or a Singer? Maybe a Dancer? Janitor? Though I suspect you wouldn't really like that…"

"Uhh… I was wondering if you needed any extra waiters…"

"Oh! You want to be a waiter!" Yami pursed his lips thoughtfully for a moment. Then he clapped his hands and leaned forward. "Okay, Takahashi-kun, you're hired."

Ryou's eyes almost popped out. "That fast?"

Yami shrugged. "Yeah. I'll only need you to leave your resume over here…" He tapped his desk lighly. "… And sign this contract." Ryou saw his hands reach out under the desk to pull said contract. "… And you're all set." Yami smiled warmly at him, gesturing at the contract.

Ryou left his resume and skimmed through the contract for a few moments, before taking a pen and signing with his signature at the very bottom part. He handed it to Yami, who calmly stood up and held out a hand. Ryou gave him a perplexed look before taking it.

"Welcome to the Psychedelic Monkey, Ryou-kun." Yami beamed at him as he shook his hand.

"Th-thank you, sen--… err, Yami-san."

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door, a rather obnoxious one at that. Yami gave Ryou a wry smile. "Well, since you're here now, I better introduce you to my partner and the co-owner of this club. I guess that's him right there since that's his trademark 'I'll-make-your-ears-bleed' knock."

"Uhm…" Ryou was rendered speechless yet again.

"Come in! The door's not locked!" Yami called over, and the door swung open to reveal…

"Yami! You little bastard! I told you to replace that stupid janitor of ours, but _noooo_! You have to be a lazy ass—" And the speaker stopped.

And stared. Ryou felt like he was going to melt like butter at high noon at the other's gaze.

"What is _he _doing _here_?" 

Yami ignored him and slung an arm around Ryou's shoulders. "Ryou-kun, I want you to meet Hidomu Bakura, my partner, co-owner of this club and overall dumbass. Bakura, this is Takahashi Ryou, our newest waiter." Yami watched as the two exchanged glances, one suspicious while the other one nervous. Yami was obviously missing something here.

"Am I missing something here?"

Bakura turned his gaze to Yami, narrowing his eyes. "We've met."

Yami raised an eyebrow as he looked from Bakura to Ryou. "Oh, really? When?"

Ryou was the one who graced him with a reply, albeit soft and almost inaudible. "A week ago, Yami-san. My friend and I came here and Bakura-san… introduced himself to me at the bar."

"More like shoved his tongue down your throat, you mean." Yami gave them both a teasing smile. He took satisfaction in the fact that Ryou blushed prettily while Bakura growled low in his direction.

"Really, Bakura, you have absolutely no shame." Yami 'tsked' and shook his head.

"Watch your mouth, you fucking peeping tom."

"Well, I believe we're straying from business here." Yami clapped his hands together and ignored Bakura's curses. "Ryou-kun, I speak in behalf of the staff when I say that we are very pleased to have you here with us. Especially Bakura." He grinned at said person's direction.

"Why you—"

"Anyway, your work starts tomorrow at exactly seven p.m. Report here first so Mariku, our manager, will be sure to tell you your schedules and shifts. That's all, Ryou-kun. If you want, you can leave now."

"Ano… Won't I be wearing a uniform or anything?"

Yami laughed and patted his back. "Of course you will! You'll just have to wait and see tomorrow. 'Till then I'll be seeing you in class! Don't forget to do the homework I gave you!"

Ryou gave him a look that plainly spelled 'what-the-hell?' and promptly nodded. He turned to walk past Bakura when the other boy caught his wrist, halting him. "Y-yes?"

Bakura stared at Ryou. He wanted to say something actually _nice _that would maybe bring Ryou down to his knees so he can sweep the beautiful boy off his feet, but the only thing that he managed to say was "Don't be late."

Ryou stared back at him, seemingly questioning, perhaps looking for a deeper meaning hidden behind Bakura's dark eyes. Then he nodded, breaking the spell. " Don't worry, Bakura-san. I won't be."

Bakura released his wrist and let him walk past.

Yami leaned back on his desk. "Quite the nice catch you've got for yourself there."

Bakura gave him a reproachful glance. "And your little pet Yugi isn't? What? The sex getting boring or something?"

He smirked. "Actually, it has never been better."

"Then lay off him." 

"What? You're not jealous, are you?"

"No, you idiot. So, shut up." Bakura snapped. "It's just that you've hired one of your students. Now I know that you really have to be some sort of a mental case."

Yami shrugged. "Takes one to know one."

Bakura wisely chose to ignore that comment. "I just hope we can do something for him to not get involved with the shit going on in this joint."

Yami's expression turned serious. He approached Bakura and put a hand on his shoulder. Although they didn't look like it, they were actually best friends since childhood, and no one understood Yami like Bakura and vice-versa. They were really very much alike.

"Bakura, we'll all try, but if it happens, it happens. You know what happened with Yugi."

The spiky-haired teen nodded. "You know, for an idiot, you're really okay."

"Yeah, same to you, dumbass."

^^^^^^^^^^

"Look, we're not selling it, and that's final!" One blond-haired, amethyst-eyed negotiator known as Mariku Osiris yelled as he simultaneously slammed his fist down onto the wooden table, the mug beside him almost toppling down.

"Even with all the benefits we're offering you? Besides, we could make the shabby old place—"

"No, no and _no_! Jesus Christ, are you deaf or something, Mr. Crawford?"

Pegasus Crawford frowned heavily. "Very well, then." He calmly stood up and gathered his papers. He extended a hand to the obviously peeved Mariku. "Thank you for your time, Mr. Osiris."

Mariku rolled his eyes and took the offered hand, grumbling under his breath. "Yeah, whatever."

__

"Annoying children… how could these little ducklings like him and that Nahoshi and Hidomu own and manage such a high-maintenance club?" Pegasus thought, forcing one last smile for Mariku.

"If it's not too much trouble, I wish to speak to Nahoshi-san and Hidomu-san next week. Are they free?"

Mariku snorted. "Yeah, you can try next week. Although I doubt that it would produce your desired results."

Pegasus' lips turned into a neutral line as he nodded, resisting the urge to wring the young man's neck. 'Thank you again and good day." Mariku waved him off and Pegasus exited, feeling a little less than pleased.

"So, boss, how did it go?" His 'butler' and self-appointed right hand Honda Hiroto asked him as soon as he entered the limousine headed straight for home.

"What do you think?" He countered in a less than amiable tone.

Honda winced. "Not too well, I guess."

"All too right, unfortunately."

Suddenly, the distinct ringing of someone's cellphone could be heard and Honda excuse himself to dig from his pockets until he had the phone.

"Moshi-moshi?"

"Who is it?" Pegasus asked tersely.

Honda covered the receiver and turned to Pegasus. "It's Mako, boss. He's asking if the operation is still on go."

"Of course it is."

"You heard that, Mako? Yeah, that was the boss… Didn't I tell you that this morning? I told you that the Angel Dust and Ecstacy are to be put in small packets… Yeah, yeah, 50 ml., whatever, I don't care! As long as you can slip it wherever you can! Okay? Okay. Yeah, I'll be there " And with that, Honda hung up and put his phone back into his pocket.

"No complications, I trust?" Came the smooth question of Pegasus.

Honda nodded, to his satisfaction. 

"In no time, we'll have that club into our hands."

^^^^^^^^^^

TBC…

Whew, finally! * wipes sweat * Okay, who saw the Honda with Pegasus thing coming? Eh, well, this _is _an AU, so I can make Honda to be whatever I damn well want him to be. In the next installment, Pegasus unveils the devious plan that will make Yami, Bakura and Mariku give up the club. And Ryou starts working there and finds a bit of trouble waiting for him. The romance also progresses… Stay tuned! 

Here are the shout-outs to the reviewers!

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Sugar-Kat: Yup, I've updated finally since I realized that I just had to finish this thing before it drove me nuts… Wah! You stole Yugi's sugar again! Yami is _so _going after you. * snickers * Thanks!

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DreamingChild: Malik's opinion on Yami is, I think, the general opinion of virtually everyone. He speaks for all of us, ne? ^^ Yeah, Ryou is both the lucky and unlucky guy for having someone like Malik ( who is, as you said, _insane _)as a best friend. I think they make the perfect best friends, and if Bakura and Mariku didn't exist, I'd probably be promoting them as a couple! ^^ Thanks for the review!

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Destiny: You get your answers in this chapter. Yup, Bakura and Yami are friends and partners, but not in a romantic way. Ryou is a waiter, and as much as I would have liked him to be a stripper… it won't happen yet. Yes, take note of the 'yet'. * grins * Mariku? Oh, you'll definitely be seeing more of Mariku, I promise that…^^

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Harakiri: Malik. Is. A. Whore. You took the words right out of my mouth. Hehe… Thanks for the review!

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Tri: Thank you! ^^ I really do try to twist the plot whenever I can. Well, Ryou has met Bakura again at Yami's office, but he's definitely going to see him again at work. So, watch out for that!

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jenna: Here's the update, already! I'm glad you're liking this one, thanks! ^__^

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Wizzu: Waah! * falls over herself * Thank you so much for your praise! I'm so happy that you liked the Ryou/Malik dynamic! * glomps * Arigatou! ^__^

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Maruken: Yep, 'kinky' is definitely a cool word. ^^ Well, Malik didn't really get drunk in this chapter, but he _will _in the next one, and that's for sure. Yup, Yami knows Bakura, all right. Thanks for the review! ^_^

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a-yolanda13: Thanks! ^^ Glad you liked the fluff. Yami and Yugi are going to make another appearance very soon, and this time, it won't be that pretty. ^__^

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Amy Hirosaki: Ryou won't be saying any 'hey babys' anytime soon, that's for sure. If anything, the people he's going to be serving will be the ones doing the propositioning. ^^ Thanks for the review! 

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akuryounoseiki: You're welcome! ^^ I'm mentioning you here again, so… thanks for the review! What? You're too lazy to upload your fics? But I wanna read some of yours, too! * wails * As for the Amane thing, I made sure to do a bit of research for this so I wouldn't be getting all the technical facts wrong. I'm glad you noticed that bit. ^__^

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AngelStarFire Hikarist: Wai! * glomps * Thanks for the review! ^^ I promise that there's gonna be more B/R and M/M stuff as this story progresses, and Yami and Yugi will also have their share of moments as well. * grins *

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person6: When I saw your name, I swear I almost fainted right here! Especially since I absolutely adore your fics, namely "Sign of the Seer", which I think is just bloody amazing. ^^ But all I can really say now is thank you, because your review was really very encouraging and quite flattering. * blushes * Yeah, the three yamis are ex- drug lords, and their past is going to be revealed soon. Why would someone as young as they are ( they're all 19, as I've mentioned ) be involved in that kind of business in the past AND now own and manage a club all by themselves? They must have gone through some tough times for that to happen, ne? ^^ Of course, there will be much B/R fluff, since this is about them, and they're my favorite, too! * squeals * And it's not only you that can relate to Malik, I can understand him as well since I sort of have the same problem myself. I'm glad that there's someone other than me who can relate to Malik's 'commitment-phobia' situation. Thank you so much. * glomps * ^__^


	5. Period 01

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DISCLAIMER: If I owned it, do you really think I'd still be writing fics?

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NOTE/S: I don't know what to say. I feel so loved. * sniffs * The response to the last chapter just had me overwhelmed, and I'm really grateful to all of you for that. For someone who's just starting out in this fandom, this is a pretty big thing. Without you guys, I'd be nothing. * blows kisses * Anyway, this chapter is going to be a bit longer than the first few ones. Things will happen, _almost_-happenand a few secrets will be revealed. On with the fic!

I'd like to credit a good friend of mine, **corn3ts**, for helping me with some of the ideas in here. If you're a Beyblade fan, specifically a Kai/Rei fan, go and read her fics! They rock! 

The chapter title "Period" ties in with the pattern I've set for this fic regarding the naming of the chapters. If you would notice, the chapter titles, when put together, would form a whole sentence. The "Period" is a representation of the final mark signaling the end of a sentence. Think of this one as a signaling of the end of "Act 1" in this story.

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COME UNDONE: Period

__

"Do you remember anything, anything at all? Your parents? Your family?"

"No…" The little silver-haired boy shook his head furiously as he lowered his gaze down. Fingering the hem of his shirt, anyone with eyes could clearly see that he was nervous, afraid, terrified of something around him. But what exactly was he terrified of? No one knew. He was deadly silent most of the time, and no one could delve into his mind enough to understand him well. But what everyone was sure of, was that he had gone through less than pleasant times in his seven years of life.

The woman, a middle-aged child psychiatrist, frowned in thought as she stared at him, wondering what in the world was bothering him so much. "Did your caretakers tell you anything about when you first came here?"

"I was… I was… a baby." He answered, his hands trembling as he did so.

The woman nodded, noting to herself that he was another 'child who feels unwanted by parents' case. But then she noticed his shaking, and she grew concerned. "Is there something wrong? Are you afraid, little one?"

"No-nothing…" He murmured, the trembling still not showing signs of subsiding.

"You can tell me what's wrong." She gently coaxed.

He shook his head again in wordless reply. She sighed in near-defeat. This one was a bit harder to read than the rest, but she was determined to break through his barriers. This time, she opted for a different question to help her understand him better.

"Do you have any friends here?"

The trembling lessened to a degree as he glanced up at her sharply. "Friends?"

"Yes, friends. Someone you can talk to, someone you play with. A friend."

His brow creased as he tried to recall anyone he had talked to for a long period of time or someone who he had played games with. But all his mind could come up with was stark blankness. All the other kids at the orphanage called him names, teased him because he had "funny-looking hair". They made him want to cry, and he was hurt everytime he remembered their faces. He was pretty sure none of them were his friends. 

"No. I don't have no friend." He replied at last. He had himself for a companion, and nothing else mattered, anyway.

The woman's eyes softened. "Oh, you poor thing."

Then her hand came to rest on his, and his whole body tensed. He didn't want her touching him like that. More importantly, he didn't want her looking at him like that. Eyes that gazed at him as if he were a wounded animal. He decided that no one should give him that kind of look ever again. Or else he'd… or else he'd…

"Don't worry, I know that you'll be able to find some friends soon. You're a sweet boy, and if only you'd have a bit more courage, they'll be swarming all over you." She smiled at him, patting his head. He wanted to scowl at her, but her hand was pushing his head downwards.

"Go back to your room, and wait for your caretaker to tell you when you'd be seeing me again." She gestured for him to stand up, and so he did, exiting without so much as a thank you or goodbye.

She looked after him as he went off, bringing her gaze to the file sitting on her desk. From what she'd gathered from the file…

The boy's name was Hidomu Bakura, as was written on the basket he was put in when his supposed mother dropped him off the orphanage. His mother left him in the care of the orphanage volunteers, but not before telling them the reason why. His mother was the mistress of a business tycoon, and she and Bakura were being chased by the police to comply with the orders of the tycoon's legal wife. She loved her son, but she couldn't risk keeping him.

The caretakers said that he was a quiet, withdrawn boy. Sometimes he had sudden bouts of temper, usually related to the other children's teasing of him. He was distant, but when he was angry…

She shook her head, setting the file down. This boy was definitely going to be a challenge.

Meanwhile, the little boy went back to his room. He lay down on his bed and started to think. Why was he there in the first place? Couldn't he go out and explore the world? He wanted to do just that, but he was trapped in this… cold, loveless place.

It was then that he decided that he wanted to try being brave.

That night, he took nothing with him, and escaped from the orphanage.

He never thought of going back to that place again, and he was glad for it.

For a little boy his age, he was quite impressive for the sheer distance that he had run. Soon, he was far, far away from the orphanage, almost exceeding his limits. When he stopped, he realized that he was somewhere dark and unbelievably chilly. He wrapped his arms around his tired self and leaned onto a brick wall, sliding down until he reached the hard earth. He slept, happy and oblivious to the dangers of a world where he had no one but himself.

The next morning, as the bright sun glared at him and forced his sleepy lids to open, his stomach growled loud, and he realized he had nothing to eat. He spied a nearby garbage can, and he stood up and diligently began to dig for food. But he found nothing except the occasional banana peel or other such fruit leftovers. Groaning as he clutched his stomach, he was desperate for some food that he contemplated eating the actual banana peel.

Then he saw it. From the corner of his eye, there was a rich foreigner walking down the street, nearing the alley where he was in. The man was short, stocky and draped in gold, and the little boy knew that it was a sign that he had money. If he had money, then maybe he'd be able to buy food, and he wouldn't feel that horrible pain in his belly. Turning away, his eyes came upon a small brick, and he picked it up.

He waited for the man with his brick in hand, prepared for an attack. The man neared the alley, and with all his strength, he grabbed onto the man's sleeve and pulled him to the dark recesses of the alley.

"Hey, What the—"

He spoke no more as the boy pounded into his head with the brick, effectively rendering him unconscious, or perhaps dead. After almost a minute of pounding, he stopped and knelt down, not minding the puddle of crimson spilling from the man's skull. He dug onto his pockets, and he found what he was looking for. A thousand yen, maybe more. He didn't really know. He wasn't good at counting yet.

He shoved the bills in his pocket, and began to walk to the store across the street, never stealing a second glance at the bloodied corpse of the first man he had killed.

He forgot the face of the man as the seconds flew by. He knew he was supposed to feel guilty about it, but he just… didn't. He told himself that he probably needed that money more than the fat man did, anyway.

He lived like that for quite some time, stealing, robbing, even joining a gang of kid rogues when he was eight. Occasionally, he had to kill to survive, but that was all right with him. He thought of himself, and only himself, and for him that was how it should always be.

But not for long, apparently.

One day when he was nine, the local police raided the old cellar that he and his gang were staying in, and they brought some of his gang-mates back to their parents or, in his case, was taken back to an orphanage. 

He first thought it was the same place that he had escaped from two years ago, and at first he refused to even step within ten feet of the orphanage's grounds. But then he looked up, and saw the sign, "St. Matthew's Home for the Abandoned", and he was partly relieved that it wasn't the same orphanage than before. And before he knew it, he was inside. 

A woman, a nun, as he had come to know, gently guided him towards a room where children like himself played. But he didn't feel like joining them, so he just sat down on the carpet in the far right corner of the room. 

Then he noticed that someone else was sitting beside him, reading a book called "Treasure Island" ( one of his gang-mates was patient enough to teach him to read, and he was an incredibly fast learner ). The other child must have noticed the silver-haired boy's gaze on him, and lowered the book down. Ruby and Dark Chocolate stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity.

Without warning, the ruby-eyed boy beamed at him and held out a hand. "Hi, I'm Yami! What's your name?"

After a moment, he reluctantly took hold of Yami's hand. "B-Bakura…"

'Let's be friends!" Yami gleefully declared as he eagerly shook Bakura's hand. The silver-haired boy struggled a bit before he could take his hand back.

"…You have weird hair." Bakura snorted, pointing at the other boy's admittedly strange hair, what with the combination of yellow, red and black and in the shape of something like a star…

"You do, too!" Yami replied cheerfully, ruffling Bakura's spiky, silver mane, much to the boy's chagrin. 

And that was the meeting that would spark a lifelong bond of trust and friendship.

Months passed, and Bakura and Yami did indeed become close friends. They played, studied and even slept in the same room together. Bakura realized that now, he didn't think of only himself, but he thought of Yami, too. At first, he didn't really like the unwelcome change that Yami brought to his otherwise untroubled world, but he couldn't deny the fact that he cared a lot for Yami. They protected each other, and when Yami would sometimes cry from nightmares of his past, he would hug him ( although awkwardly ) and tell him it was okay.

Then on a fine day when he and Yami were both eleven years old, their real-life nightmare began. It was that day that they were both adopted by a man named Milliard Crawford. He specifically wanted the two little ones, Nahoshi Yami and Hidomu Bakura, to be his sons, and he got just what he wanted when he brought Yami and Bakura to his mansion the following day.

It was a day that the two boys regretted for the rest of their lives.

"Bakura? Oi, Bakura! Wake up, you lousy bastard!" Mariku slapped the other teen awake, jolting him out of his sleep-induced stupor. Bakura rubbed his cheek, irritated.

"What the hell was that for?"

Mariku thrust a cell phone in his face, shaking it. "Phone call for you. Well, technically it's Yami's, but since he's out on that teaching stint of his, and you're the only one who's as high in rank as Yami is, I figured that you should be the one talking here."

"Yeah, well, thanks a lot." He muttered, glaring at Mariku before snatching the phone.

"Moshi-moshi?"

"Ah, is this Nahoshi-san on the line?"

"No, he's out. This is Hidomu."

"Hidomu-san! Hello and Good day! This is Pegasus Crawford from Sennen Corporations. I understand that you are Nahoshi-san's financial partner in the management of your club, correct?"

Bakura frowned. The name "Crawford" struck a not-so-pleasant chord in his mind. This was probably just some stupid coincidence, though. And the guy obviously loved beating around the bush with all his fancy shmancy wording… Why wouldn't this guy just get straight to the point? "Yes, I am."

The man on the other line laughed heartily, a disturbing sound, if you asked Bakura. And that was something coming from him, because he himself wasn't really known for a laugh that belonged in the realm of the sane, either. "Well, as your manager Osiris-san has probably told you, I've spoken with him countless times before regarding the possible retirement of you and Nahoshi-san as owners of the club."

Oh, so this was the persistent asshole Mariku was talking about. "Yeah, I've heard about you from him. What do you want with us?"

"I would like to arrange a meeting with you and Nahoshi-san maybe at this time next week? That is, if you're free."

Out of the corner of his eye, Bakura saw Mariku shaking his head and making an 'L' sign with his fingers in the middle of his forehead. Bakura couldn't help but snicker.

"What a total loser." Mariku said softly, then he covered his mouth as he all-out guffawed.

"Hidomu-san?"

Bakura's fingers made a 'close-your-zipper' motion on his lips at the laughing Mariku. "Yes, yes, I'll tell Yami about the meeting you're planning. Is that all?"

"Yes. Thank you for your time, Hidomu-san." With that said, Bakura didn't wait for Pegasus to say goodbye and was the first to hang up, then he immediately faced Mariku, who was still a little red-faced.

"Next time, you better shut your trap while we're talking business here, Mariku!"

"Yeah, sorry. Sorry for telling the truth…"

Bakura paused briefly before asking, "…Is he really that full of shit?"

"Oh, yeah. I mean, c'mon! The guy has to get real! As if he has a chance in hell of getting a hold of this club."

Bakura let a small smile rest upon his lips. "We worked hard for this baby, ne? Remember those days?"

Mariku nodded as he smiled as well. "All too well, my friend. All too well."

"The only thing I can't really accept is the fact that yeah, we did work hard, but our actual _line _of work was…" He shook his head, as if disbelieving of himself.

"Past is past, Bakura. Let it go." 

Bakura went silent for a moment, appearing to be lost in his thoughts. Suddenly, he gave a slight nod. "Yeah, guess you're right."

"Hmm… wanna go play some poker?"

"Yeah. But are you sure _you _can take me on?" Bakura grinned at the blond, showing off his fangs. "I am _so _going to kick your ass to kingdom come, blondie."

Mariku glared at him for using the hated nickname. "You're on!"

&^&^&^

"Yes. Thank you for your time, Hidomu-san." And the one on the other line hung up before Pegasus even had a chance to complete the name 'Hidomu-san'. The tall, regal man scowled menacingly at the receiver before banging the phone down.

"Those brats think they could get the best of me…" He gritted out, sitting down on his plush chair. He really and truly despised the nerve of those… _children _who operated that god-forsaken club. How he wanted to crush them beneath his fingers, see them beg for mercy at his feet…

"Boss? Can I come in?"

"Yes, you may enter, Hiroto."

Honda Hiroto discreetly pushed open the door to Pegasus' office. He turned to face him, closing the door with one hand. Pegasus gestured for him to sit down so that they could talk business properly.

"Is there a problem with things, my dear boy?"

Honda inwardly cringed. Sometimes, he had slightest inkling that his boss was some sort of a closet pedophile. Especially with the way he looked at him with those eyes of his. Well, eye, technically, since his right eye was damaged and in its place was a golden prosthetic eye custom-made from all places, Egypt.

"Erm, well, I was just here to ask about that new operation you had in mind… Am I really to be sent to Domino High to spy? Who am I spying on?"

Pegasus nodded at him. "Yes, you are to be sent to that particular school, since first of all, one of the club owners work there as a teacher. Secondly, that is the school nearest to the Psychedelic Monkey, therefore there are many club-goers studying there."

"If I may ask, uhh… how exactly is this related to you getting that club?"

"Don't you get it, Hiroto?" At Honda's blank stare, Pegasus sighed, mumbling a low "Figures…" under his breath. "You see, Hiroto, what we are out to do, is to exploit that club as a low-grade joint for drug pushers, takers and dealers. The problem is, that those brats who own said club are doing great measures to ensure that there are no drug troubles, and we don't want that, do we now? Yes, I thought so. Well, your job is to bring our _products _to that school, and… _encourage _your schoolmates to indulge in it. Even better, try to find the people who go or work at that club and encourage them."

"I won't be the only one, right?"

"Of course, not. Mako and some of the others will go with you as well. More will be stationed to be inside the club, though."

Honda nodded once in understanding. Th plan seemed simple enough, actually. But Honda knew that his boss was weaving this all to end in some grand master plan. He decided to ask, anyway.

"And after we go about drugging people, what's gonna happen next?"

"You'll see, Hiroto. You'll see." Pegasus answered, smiling too widely for anyone's liking.

"Why is he so intent on getting that stupid club, anyway?…" Honda asked himself, mentally shivering slightly at Pegasus' eerie smile. This time, he wisely decided to shut his mouth.

&^&^&^

"Wait, wait, let me get this straight… so, you're now a waiter?"

"Yes, I am now a waiter. Is there a problem with that?"

"Like hell there is!" Oh-kay, that was rather unexpected. Just _what _did Malik have against waiters? Ryou's lips turned into a fine, thin line as he calmly looked at his best friend as if he were patronizing a small child.

"Malik, you didn't, by any chance, get dumped by a waiter in the past… did you?" And Ryou knew that he had hit home with the stricken expression on his friend's fair face. Ryou then decided to take this opportunity to tease Malik.

"Aaw, but I thought you were the dumper, not the…dumpee." That just sounded plain stupid, but Ryou didn't really care.

Malik's trademark haughty glare almost sent Ryou laughing. "I _am _the dumper, which I think isn't even a word… and who said that I was ever dumped by some idiot waiter?"

"Your pretty but dumped face did."

"Ryou…" Malik growled threateningly.

"Sorry, sorry." Said boy laughed at Malik's menacing ( or at least trying to be ) expression .

"You don't sound sorry to me…" Malik muttered under his breath as Ryou took out the keys to their dormitory room. When he opened it, he immediately flipped the light switch on and kicked off his sneakers, then threw himself onto the lower half of his and Malik's bunk bed.

"Ryou, you haven't even changed yet." Malik said in a disapproving tone.

Ryou cracked open one eye and looked at Malik, who was looming over his bed with a hand on his hip. "I'm tired… and I've had enough shocks for today, so I think I deserve some sleep."

"Shocks? What shocks?" Malik asked, then his lavender eyes widened as he grinned mischievously at Ryou. He plopped down on the mattress beside his friend, supporting himself with his elbows. "Any gossip you've found out?"

"Promise you won't blab when I tell?"

Malik gasped dramatically, putting a fist on his heart. "Surely you jest? Of course, I won't tell!"

Ryou sighed, propping his chin up. "Yami-sensei owns the club."

Malik almost choked. "No. Way."

"Yes way."

"Are you shitting me?!"

"I most definitely am not shitting you, Malik."

Malik let himself fall back on the bed, staring up at the wood that separated his and Ryou's bunks. "So that's why he wears those ungodly amounts of leather to class…" He murmured thoughtfully.

Ryou let himself chuckle softly at the suggestion. "Yeah, maybe." Then he yawned and rubbed his eyes, weary from the day's events. "Ne, Malik, I'm really tired, so why don't you just go back to the top bunk so we both could get some rest, hmm?"

Malik's legs shot up in the air, and the he used it to propel himself out of Ryou's bunk. "Mmm… guess I will. Ne, Ryou?"

"… What?"

"You'll tell me more tomorrow, right?"

"Only if you behave."

Malik mock-saluted. "Yes, sir!"

&^&^&^

When trouble was brewing and planning to rear its ugly head, Yami would always be able to clearly sense it. He didn't know why, it was an instinct that he had ever since he was a mere child. Now, he was able to sense it more than ever.

It was precisely at 6:05 p.m. that he had returned to the Psychedelic Monkey after his duties as a substitute teacher in Domino High were finished. His head was pounding with all the lesson plans, grading tests, bitchy students, even bitchier co-teachers… He really needed some aspirin, or some Tylenol. And Yugi, too, for good measure. But Yugi told him that they had a big test on History the following day, so the Yugi option was out of the question.

He returned to his office, fully expecting to get some well-deserved rest. He did _not _expect Bakura to come barging into his office, and demanding that they talk about… something. He wasn't really listening.

"Are you even listening to me?!"

Yami blinked. "Uhh… come again?"

Bakura sighed in obvious frustration. "Okay, I'll say it again for your slow brain's sake. Look, some guy named Pegasus Crawford is out to get this club, and he—"

"Isn't that the same guy that Mariku's been negotiating with?"

Although annoyed at being interrupted, Bakura continued nonetheless. "Yes, that's him. And since whatever Mariku says just won't get through his thick skull, he's demanded that he wants to see us both next week. You game?"

Yami took a moment to process this piece of information in his mind. "Yeah, sure. I'm game." He answered nonchalantly, shrugging.

"You're not taking this seriously, are you?"

Yami smirked. "Not really."

And Bakura graced him with a smirk of his own. "You and me both."

Yami, now fully awakened from half-asleep state, leaned back on his chair. "Whatever he tries, it can't possibly be anything that you, me and Mariku can't handle."

"Amen to that."

"Indeed. Can't be harder than anything we've faced before in the past…" But as Yami said these words, he trailed off, almost as if his confidence was waning. What if, just what if, Pegasus Crawford could pose a real threat to their business? And he bore the name "Crawford"… he couldn't possibly be related to their adoptive father…

Could he?

He hoped not.

He liked to think that this was just slight paranoia on his part. But he couldn't shake off the feeling that this was trouble looking at them in the face. Yami couldn't help feeling this way, eversince…

__

That day.

It was actually a fine day for a stroll, or for a bit of biking. So that was what little Nahoshi Yami did. Taking out his four-wheel training bike out of their spacious garage, he began to circle the grounds, eventually reaching a rather woody part of the Nahoshi Family land.

The wind blew on his face and he laughed heartily, enjoying every moment of it. The little child of barely six years was a happy, funny and smart little boy. So smart infact, that he had learned to read and write in three different languages when he was only four years old. They all said that he would succeed in whatever career he would choose to take.

At that time, no one knew just how right that statement was.

But not only was he intelligent, he was happy with his life. His parents loved him and gave everything he would wish for. His tutors adored him. Even the maids were smitten with his charm. He was riding high on the clouds.

But all that came crashing down that day, when after he went biking, he returned home to tell his mother and father that he finally wanted a two-wheeler bike. He was so excited, grinning like a Cheshire cat as he ran all the way upstairs. He didn't notice the eerie quiet that surrounded the house, no chattering of the maids or anything else.

"Kaasan! Tousan!" He yelled exuberantly, but what he saw before him cut his excitement short. There standing above the bodies of his parents were three burly men, their faces all covered in wide, black masks of some sort. He blinked, looking down, and his eyes widened at the sight of red on his mother and father's chests. They stared up lifelessly, their mouths hanging open in silent horror.

"Who… who are you?" He asked timidly, lifting his head to look at the three men. Then the one with blue eyes laughed. He slowly lifted his gun and pointed it at Yami's head.

"You miss your mom and dad, already? Don't worry, you'll be with them soon, little one."

He barely had time to move away as the bullet aimed for his head. And everything went black.

When he woke up, he was in a bed. But not his bed, because his bed was much, much more comfortable and smelled like peaches. This one was harder and smelled like disinfectant. He wrinkled his nose, and opened his eyes, adjusting to the sheer white that was the ceiling.

He was… in a hospital. He had lived. He tried to sit up, but there was a pain in his shoulder that kept him there. But the gun was aiming for his head… Oh, yes, he had dodged a bit, so maybe that helped.

But what about his parents? Carefully, he tried to piece the clues together. He knew that the guns the three men had held could kill. He knew that when excessive amounts of blood spilt from a person, he would die. Then… his mother and father were… dead?

He began to cry like he had never cried before in his all too happy childhood. And while he wept, he remembered the stark image of a masked face framed by blue eyes.

Blue eyes that would pay.

&^&^&^

"Malik, are you sure you're going to be okay here? I mean, you're all alone…"

Said blond teen beamed and chuckled at Ryou, who was simply annoyed at that moment from being sort of pushed off like he wasn't concerned about his best friend. "Just go to your work, sweetie. And if you're lucky, you get to drag me home when I get drunk."

Ryou hit the back of Malik's head lightly. "More like if _you _get lucky. Which isn't gonna happen, if I can help it."

Malik rolled his eyes as he sat down at the bar. " Whatever. Have fun, Ryou."

And Ryou took off for Yami's office. While he was walking in the corridors, someone called out to him. "Hey, kid! Are you the new waiter?" Ryou blinked at the query, the turned to face the newcomer, a tall, dark-skinned man with amethyst eyes and dirty blond, not too mention all too spiky hair…

"Hey there, kid. How're you doin'?"

Ryou smiled up at him. "Oh, I'm fine, thank you." He held out a hand. "I'm Takahashi Ryou. It's a pleasure to meet you, sir."

The other one's lips curved up into a huge grin as he took Ryou's hand. "Oh, no. The pleasure's all mine. I'm Mariku Osiris, the manager of this joint. Yami and Bakura told me to come and get you your uniform, so if you please…" Mariku said as he motioned for Ryou to follow him to another room farther down.

Mariku, meanwhile, was whistling appreciatively in his head. "Wow, is this the kid that Yami said Bakura had the hots for? Okay, now I gotta admit that that bastard _does _have good taste after all. Hmm… I hope I get to see that other hot kid, Malik. Wow, now _he _has the most gorgeous piece of ass this side of town. I wonder who has better taste, me or Bakura?…" These unanswered questions remained as such when he was cut from his thoughts as they entered the room.

Mariku picked up two pieces of clothing from the rack. "Here. Put these on over there." He pointed over to the dressing room. Ryou nodded, hoping that it wasn't some muscle shirt and hotpants that he were holding in his hands.

To his relief, he was only to wear a loose black shirt with an insanely grinning monkey holding a huge banana at the front for its print. And then there were the shorts… that barely covered his thighs. Oh well, at least it wasn't hotpants, because those things won't even be able to cover someone's butt! He absently wondered why Malik enjoyed wearing them half of the time, and as quickly as the thought came, it vanished in his mind.

Meanwhile, Malik was steadily growing drunk by the minute, and he liked it like that. He lowered his head, moaning and giggling at the same time. The bartender was in the backroom, so nobody noticed someone sit next to him and pour a white, crystalline-like substance in his powerful, alcoholic drink.

That someone was Kusanagi Shiro, a goon of one Pegasus Crawford. Yeah, he didn't have orders to go about and drug people _yet_, but he liked this one for himself now. He was so pretty, like a doll. So beautiful, that he'd like to have this doll for his own self-satisfaction. And he would use any means to get him. Good thing he had some extra 'pleasantries' left in his pocket… 

On the other side of the bar, Ryou went about his duties as a waiter, serving up food and a few drinks to some of the patrons sitting on the plush sofas beside the dance floor. All was going well until…

"Well, aren't you a pretty baby? Come here and sit in daddy's lap." A middle-aged, balding man leered at him, particularly at his exposed legs, and patted at his lap. A small bulge could be seen in his crotch area, and Ryou almost gagged at the sight.

"I'm sorry, sir, but I'm here to take your order. Other than that, I can't accept any other proposal you might make." Ryou said stiffly, growing nervous by the second. His first night as a waiter, and _this _had to happen. Someone up there must hate him, he thought.

"Say what, bitch?" The man ground out angrily, pounding both fists on the table. "I said, I want you here right now!"

"Is there a problem here?"

Both Ryou and the balding man turned to look at a silver-haired, dark-eyed teen in a loose blue tank top and black leather pants. His eyes were narrowed to slits as he looked at the man on the table eyeing Ryou.

Ryou was surprised, to say the least. "Bakura-san?…"

"Who the fuck are you?" Asked the man, glaring back at Bakura.

"If you must know, I happen to be one of the two owners of this joint, and that includes that chair you're sitting on, _fucker_." Bakura spat back, his black-tipped silver mane brushing his cheek as he stared at the offender.

"Well, if you're the owner, I'd tell you that the service around here sucks! I mean, I was just asking your pretty little bitch here for some company, and he refuses! What kind of stinkin' joint is this, anyway?"

"Our waiters here are allowed to have 'fun' with low-life customers like you, but only if they give their full consent. Did _you _give your full consent, Ryou?" Bakura turned to look at the younger teen, who had been silently observing the whole time.

Ryou's mind did a momentary happy dance. "Oh, he remembers my name!" it said in glee. But then he shook his head in reply to the question as Bakura turned to look at him. "No, I… I didn't give him my consent, Bakura-san."

"You little—" The man lunged for Ryou's throat, but Bakura saw it just in time and punched the man in the gut. Hard and swift, that always did the job. The man passed out cold on the floor. Bakura called two bouncers over, Ryou recognized one of them as Akira, and they picked up the unconscious man and brought him to a back room.

"Are you okay?" Bakura asked softly, and somehow, Ryou still heard him despite of all the music bouncing off the walls.

"Y-yeah… Thank you." Ryou replied, staring up at dark, melted chocolate orbs.

Bakura stared back into Ryou's own hazel-brown eyes. He suddenly felt as if it was only the two of them that existed, looking into each other's eyes, inexplicably drawn to each other. 

Ryou felt that this was somewhat wrong… but it also felt so right. How could that be? They just met about a week and a half ago. How could everything like this happen so fast? Love at first was something he never really believed in, but this… What could he call this, if it wasn't love at first sight?

"You better be more careful next time." Bakura said, breaking the trance that held both of them at its mercy. His hand moved on its own, and he realized that he was brushing the other boy's cheek in a light caress. "There are worse dickheads here willing to do more to get someone as beautiful as you."

Ryou's cheeks gave way to a light blush that wasn't really that obvious with the dim lights surrounding the club. Bakura's warm hand rested on his cheek still, his fingers brushing Ryou's cheekbones. Did that mean that Bakura thought that he was beautiful?…

A loud scream interrupted everything. 

Ryou gasped, recognizing the voice. He dropped his notepad and pushed past a shocked Bakura.

"Well, shit." Bakura thought. "Looks like there's more trouble ahead." And with that in mind, he ran after Ryou.

&^&^&^

That was… long! And exhausting. Fifteen pages… O__o I think that things are starting to take off from here. Complicated, this is one is definitely going to be. Act 1 has ended, and Act 2 is going to be more plot-driven, I guess. Stay tuned! ^^

A short, but very grateful shout-out to the reviewers: A huge **THANK YOU **goes out to **scryed**, **Sugar-Kat**, **Maruken**, **Elle-FaTe2x1**, **Harakiri**, **It'sHardToBelieve**, **redconvoy**, **Kaze**, **bakuras girlfriend**, **citcat-chan**, **DreamingChild**, **Princess of Mirrors**, **AngelStarFire Hikarist** and **person6**.

These are replies also to certain reviewers who I felt needed an answer for some of their questions:

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DreamingChild: Yup, you are really going to want to pluck that eye of his right out of its socket after this story is through. He _is _the main villain, after all. ^^

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person6: Yes, I * heart * your fics! ^^ Is that so hard to believe? You're really good, with your unique plots and everything else that you think of. And yeah, I agree with you, what's _with_ the whole 'must-get-club-from-young-ex-drug-lords' thing? I hope this chapter gave you somewhat of an answer to that. Or at least a very wild guess. * cackles * I hope you also found out a half of the reason why Yami and Bakura are a bit disturbed, and we haven't even gotten to Mariku's side of the story yet. And that's only their childhood, so more of their past will be revealed soon! ^__^ As for the fluff, the fluff is going to come along nicely, so don't you worry about that. * winks * By the way, your two new B/R fics just blow me away. ^__^v

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Princess of Mirrors: Your review is not only something that needs to be noticed, but also something to be worshiped. =D I can't thank you enough for giving me your honest, thoughtful criticism. It's something I really need to grow as a writer. Thank you a million times. * bows * You pointed out the good points in this story, and the needs-to-be-explained ones, too. The Yugi-thing will be explained fully in the next or in the later chapters, and I'm really trying to balance out the romance and tie it with the plot. It helps a lot if readers tell me the strong and weak points like you did. I truly look forward to getting reviews from you. ^__^


	6. Their many meetings

DISCLAIMER: I wish, I wish… that YGO belonged to me!

NOTES/S: I'd like to give credit to **Princess of Mirrors**, for being so kind as to help me and be my beta-reader. hugs and kisses And this is where Act 2 rears its ugly head. On with the fic!

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COME UNDONE: Their many meetings ( Unbeta-ed version )

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Malik didn't know where the hell he was, in simpler words. One minute, he was enjoying his little drinks, and the next he was being dragged by some buff guy into a dark room. His thoughts were getting hazy, and he giggled like a little child as he was pushed onto something soft.

"Mmm… are you Mariku?"

The man standing above him paused in his rummaging through his pockets. "What?"

Malik squinted, trying to focus. "Wait, you're not Mariku… who are you?"

"Uhh… I'm…"

"Ah! I know!" the blond teen crossed his legs as he tittered yet again. The man was beginning to think that the effect of alcohol and drugs on his pretty captive might be dangerous, not only for the teen, but for him as well. "You're – the tooth fairy!"

"The what?" The man asked incredulously, immediately deeming the boy beautiful but demented. He suddenly remembered what he was supposed to be searching for, and discreetly shoved his hands into his back pockets again.

Malik pouted. "You're not the tooth fairy?" he said, stretching his body across the bed.

The man's jaw almost dropped to the floor at the sight of Malik stretching. His eyes roamed over the contours and planes that carefully formed the boy's body, and he had to keep himself from taking the boy right then and there. He gulped, as he finally found what he had been looking for.

"What's that? A magic wand?" Malik asked, slurring a bit. What was happening to him? Usually, alcohol just made his head spin. He had a high enough tolerance for it, and he could still do some serious dancing afterwards. But this time… he felt giddy, like he was riding on a cloud. But the longer he stayed on the bed, the less focused his vision had become. Not to mention his thoughts, which were beginning to get jumbled.

The man frowned at him. Was this one still fighting to keep his thoughts in order? Maybe he didn't put enough in the boy's drink. No matter, he had the numbing drug in his hands now. He slowly approached Malik, hiding the needle behind him.

"Wha – what's… happening to… me?" Malik thought, trying to regain control over himself. The man he had previously declared to be the tooth fairy approached his bedside, running his fingers over Malik's bare arm.

Then Malik saw it, the soft, silver glint of the needle, its tip adorned with a single drop of liquid.

Silver needle…

Memories, all of them unbidden, came back to Malik. His father, who he loved and trusted, who had betrayed him. His father, who drove away his mother and sister. His father, chuckling quietly as he drove a blade into his back. His father, who heard him cry and scream and plea but ignored him. It flashed like scenes from a badly-done movie, and he would see the blade…

The tip of the needle lightly grazed Malik's skin, before he savagely pushed the man backwards.

And he screamed, wanting to the drive the memories away.

The effect of the drugs, alcohol and his memories combined proved to be a formidable force that slowly took over Malik's entire body. The man stood up, not really affected by the blow and began approaching Malik again, a fierce glint in his eyes,

"Why you little shit! I'll teach you to mess with me…" He hissed, advancing slowly

Malik visibly shivered as the man took the needle out again. The man held it up in the air, squirting a little amount of liquid out of it. His lavender eyes widened to indefinite proportions as he backed away, trying to get up from the bed.

"Don't touch me – don't touch me – don't touch me…" He chanted as if it were a holy mantra. He wanted to fight back, but his vision and his hearing were steadily blurring. He could move, but not very far. That was what happened with his father long ago, he could run, but he could never hide. Ultimately, he would be caught, and he could do nothing but scream his pleas into the night.

"Don't touch me! Don't touch me! Please! Stop!" He yelled full-force, and the man hadn't even touched him yet, deafened by his shrieks. It was evident that his none-too-pleasant memories were beginning to take hold of him.

"Shut up! Shut up, kid!" The man on the other side of him yelled, and he lunged for Malik. The blond teen struggled fiercely whilst shouting, and he was able to dodge the needle again, but only by an inch.

By this time, he already had tears in his eyes, and he was so worn out that he couldn't even find the strength to wipe them away.

"Ah, this time, I've got you, pretty little doll…" He brought the tip of the needle to his skin. He noted with pleasure that Malik had already stopped struggling, and his eyelids were dilated in weariness.

"Please father, please…"

The man paused, raising an eyebrow. "Father, huh? You want me to be your daddy? Fine, I'll be your daddy, pretty golden baby…"

"I don't think so."

A soft grunt was the only sound that came from the man's lips as Mariku sharply hit a nerve in his neck. He fell to the floor with the needle in hand, unconscious. His gaze darted towards the boy on the bed who was looking at him through half-lidded eyes. He recognized him to be…

"Malik? Are you hurt?" He asked, praying that he remembered the boy's name right. He reached out to touch his arm, but he was pushed away with Malik's remaining strength.

"Don't – Don't touch me…"

Mariku's brow furrowed as he realized that this was probably drugs talking and not Malik. But surely Malik knew him, so why would he be scared? He didn't know any drugs that had _this _type of effect on anyone. Malik still had his clothes on, so he knew that he wasn't raped, and therefore can't be traumatized. Instead, he appeared to be in shock, but of what?

"Malik? Don't you remember me? We met a week ago, I think. It's Mariku." He gently pressed the boy, trying to touch his cheek.

"I said don't touch me!" He screamed as he flinched away.

"Malik!" A new voice was heard and Mariku turned. It was the silver-haired waiter that Bakura had the hots for. Speaking of the devil, Bakura himself stood behind the younger teen.

"Mariku? What the hell happened here? Another dope victim?"

Mariku tried to prevent a small smile. Bakura was always too blunt for his own good sometimes. But there was a more serious matter at hand.

"I think so. He was probably drugged with something other than dope, though." He replied, gesturing to the trembling blond beside him. Malik appeared to be breathing heavily, and Mariku guessed that any minute from now he would pass out.

"No, it has to be dope. He reeks of it." Bakura observed, and Mariku was silently amazed at how he could sense the drug when he was about ten feet away.

Bakura frowned as he looked at Ryou's worried face. It didn't suit his fair face at all, but obviously this boy on the bed was a close friend of his. "Ryou, go to your friend. Try to talk to him, see if he responds."

Without replying, Ryou made his way to Malik's other side. "Malik, please talk to me. Do you want to go back?" He asked softly, moving to touch Malik's arm. He was a bit hurt when Malik tried to pull away, clearly still afraid of _something_. Ryou stubbornly held onto his arm.

"Malik, I'll take you back to the dorm." Ryou whispered. Malik turned his head to look at Ryou, and the other boy was surprised to see tears staining his tanned cheeks. Ryou suppressed his own tears and fiercely embraced Malik.

"Oh, Malik… I'm sorry. I'm sorry." He murmured as he held Malik against him.

"Please – no more…" Malik slurred before going completely limp in Ryou's arms.

"If you want, I'll carry him back to your dorm," came the soft, sympathetic voice of Bakura as he stood beside Ryou and Malik. "I'll just go outside to check on the club and bring in some bouncers to pick this drug dealer up, and then—"

"No, I'll carry him back." Mariku interrupted, eyes soft as he moved to touch Malik's flushed cheek. Ryou eyed Mariku carefully, suspecting that he and Malik already knew each other.

Bakura nodded grimly, and he took one last, lingering glance at Ryou before he went outside to check on the club's condition. Fortunately, almost nothing changed. People were apparently used to screams coming from the back room, since the club back rooms were sometimes used as means to have cheap sex. It was Mariku's job to "listen in" on the goings-on inside the rooms, to make sure nothing fishy was happening.

"Akira! Ruko!" He called his two most trusted bouncers over.

"Yeah, boss? More trouble?" Akira grunted.

Bakura gestured to the opened back room. "Take out the dealer on the floor. Bring him to the second level."

"To Boss Yami?"

"Exactly. Now go."

**&&&**

"Who dares to step into the pharaoh's throne room?"

Yugi almost rolled his eyes. He had to go through these formalities every night that he went into the Psychedelic Monkey. Why did Yami always insist on that, anyway? Probably for showing off, he thought, snorting.

He cleared his throat. "It is I, his humble _consort_." He smirked lightly, more than sure that the word 'consort' would get through the guard's head.

The guard, dressed in ancient Egyptian garb, blinked and tried to focus his eyes to the teen below him. Damn dim lights. If he had known that this was _the _consort of the 'pharaoh', he would have let him in instantly. The pharaoh's consort wasn't exactly one to mess with, since anyone who messed with him indirectly messed with the pharaoh. And no one should even dare mess with the pharaoh.

"You may enter, pharaoh's consort."

"Thank you." Finally, Yugi thought. Now he would get to see Yami, probably dressed in his usual Egyptian Pharaoh garb, a signal to everyone that he was basically the 'King' of the club.

"Hi, Yami."

The part-time teacher, part-time club owner almost fell out of his 'throne' when he heard his little one's voice. Yami turned and gracefully pulled his golden mask off. "Yugi? What are you doing here? I thought you had that test tomorrow?"

Yugi smiled, shrugging. "It's a pretty fast read, anyway. No big deal. Is everything okay?"

Yami nodded. "Yes, fortunately. There was a slight commotion before you came, but it's settled now… I hope."

"You hope?"

"It's probably just a couple screwing the living daylights out of each other," Yami smiled suggestively at Yugi, who blushed and hissed an indignant "Yami!"

"The worst case scenario would be if someone was drugged, or maybe even raped." Yami instantly regretted what he said for he saw Yugi's violet eyes darken.

"Yugi, I'm sorry. That was callous of me—"

"No, Yami. It's okay." Yugi said, lacking conviction. Yami noticed this, but he did not press the issue further.

"Yugi, come here." Yami gestured to his lap, only covered in a piece of white and blue linen cloth. Yugi smiled slightly at him before complying with his request. Once he was settled comfortably, Yugi wrapped his arms around Yami's neck, feeling the cold surface of the gold ringlet tickle his skin.

"Are these all real, Yami?" Yugi murmured, trying to divert their conversation to something else.

"Of course. I wouldn't seem so regal if it was fake, would I?" Yami answered, raising his hands a little to show the gold ringlets encircling his shoulders, wrists and arms. Yugi chuckled in reply, toying with Yami's golden earrings as he did so.

"You seem so fond of gold, Yami." He said, his fingers trailing from Yami's ears, to his cheeks, to his golden 'crown' in the shape of an eye, which was nestled comfortably between Yami's spiky blond bangs. His other hand patted the series of golden ringlets on Yami's waist that held his white robe together.

"Nothing but the best for the pharaoh." Yami retorted, looking straight into Yugi's eyes. The unspoken statement of "you are the best for me" lingered in the air, and both leaned in for a kiss. They could already feel each other's breath tickling the other's lips, they were so close, so close…

"Boss! We've got a dealer here!"

… And yet so far. Yugi sighed against his lips, clearly disappointed. Yami almost barked out an enraged "You're all fired!" if not for the imminent self-control that he possessed. Yugi shook his head and hopped off Yami's lap. Likewise, Yami stood up from his throne, his navy blue cape seemingly flowing behind his back.

"Bring him in!" Yami commanded. The two bouncers dragged a semi-conscious man to his feet. They harshly threw the man down, his face touching Yami's sandals. Yami sneered and Yugi winced quietly as he stood by Yami's side.

Yami turned to the two bouncers, who he recognized as Akira and Ruko. "Why is he like this? Did you do something to him?"

"Boss Mariku hit him in the neck so he could pass out. We just slapped him awake." Akira replied, smirking. Yami's lips curved into a dark smile. Ah, yes. Mariku's infamous blow could very well prove fatal to anyone who was on the receiving end of it. This man was lucky that he could still even move.

"Did you search his pockets?"

Ruko nodded gruffly, pulling out a small packet filled with what Yami assumed to be dope, and an injection needle.

Yami crouched low, so he was eye-level with the man. "What is your name?"

"I… I won't tell nothin'!"

Yami growled, clenching the man's collar in his fist. He brought the man's face close to his own, and he noted with pride how the man shook like a little child in his grasp. "Don't make this hard for you. I'll ask again. What – is – your – name?"

"Ku-Kusanagi… Shi-Shiro…"

Yami grinned. "Kusanagi, eh? What is in that injection needle?"

"Num – numbing drug…"

"Who sent you here?," came Yami's abrupt question.

Kusanagi's eyes widened. He couldn't risk anything. Besides, he didn't have any orders yet and in the first place, he had acted on his own.

"No one… no one."

"Really? Are you a drug lord yourself, then?"

"N – no…"

"Yes, it seems so. You seem too foolish to be a drug lord. I'll re-phrase the question instead. Who do you work for?"

Kusanagi's heart pounded wildly. Oh, no. There was technically no escape now. But he couldn't risk saying his employer's name. Still, there was a chance that he would be released if the rumors were true.

"Why… why would I say it? You won't kill me anyway." He answered, daring to be arrogant. If the rumors that the 'pharaoh' of the club didn't kill anyone were true, then he would be safe.

To his surprise, Yami gave him a feral grin. "You think so? I wouldn't play that kind of game if I were you," He unsheathed a small but incredibly sharp dagger from his leg, and brought its tip to the man's trembling cheek. "Either you tell me who you're working for," He trailed the dagger from his cheek, down to the curve of his throat. "Or you could risk getting your precious head cut off. What do you say, hmm?"

The man raised his head defiantly, his rugged face becoming more visible with the light. Then suddenly, everyone heard a sharp gasp from Yugi, who had been silent all this time.

Without taking the dagger off Kusanagi's throat, Yami turned to Yugi. "What's wrong?"

"I recognize him." Yugi murmured, feeling dizzy all of a sudden. "He was – he was the one who drugged me, a week and a half ago. It's him! I know it!"

Yami felt his rage grow with every word that Yugi spoke, and he pressed the dagger's tip further into his captive's throat. Kusanagi cried out as the dagger pierced his skin, drawing blood.

"I'll ask again, and you will answer, or else you will die." Yami hissed low in his throat, and he was more than serious this time. He hadn't felt this dire need to kill someone eversince that one day during his and Bakura's childhood inside the Crawford Mansion, a day he personally wanted to banish forever.

"Who – do – you – work – for?"

"I ain't tellin'!"

Yami angrily slashed the dagger through Kusanagi's chest, and the crimson tint immediately spilled onto the man's shirt and on Yami's arm. The two bouncers remained passive, but Yugi put his hands over his mouth in silent horror. He felt the beginnings of tears form in his eyes, and he turned away from the scene, clutching his neck.

"Who do you work for?!" Yami repeated, his yell echoing all over the second floor.

Kusanagi groaned in agony as he clutched his bloody chest. More blood spilt from his mouth. "Craw… Crawford"

Yami's eyes narrowed, holding the dagger painfully tight in his palm. "Really? How funny." His voice held no humor in it as he spoke coldly. "May this be a lesson to your master, worthless creature. This will be his future, as it will be yours." He poised the blade directly above Kusanagi's heart. With one swift throw, he would be dead. Yami almost wanted to laugh in maniacal glee.

Small, slender arms wrapped itself around Yami's jewel-clad waist. "No! Yami, don't do it!"

"Yugi, let go."

"No." Yugi said stubbornly, burying his face in Yami's cape-laden back. He was shaking in terror as tears made its way down his cheeks. This boy wasn't the Yami he knew. This boy wasn't the Yami he loved.

"Yugi, he deserves to die. You know this as much as I do."

Yugi released his waist, and Yami turned to him. "No… no, I don't know. I know what he did to me, Yami. But no one deserves to die like that. Not even him."

"Yugi, are you out of your mind?," Yami asked, disbelieving. "He drugged you! He almost tried to rape you! He would have killed you! Then what about me? If you died, do you know what would have happened to me? Do you? I can never risk losing you to this!"

His words would have been the sweetest thing that Yugi heard if not for the fact a man's life was currently resting in their hands. His voice was cracked as he spoke. "Please, Yami. Just let him go. Make sure he doesn't do anything like that again. But don't kill him."

Yami probed Yugi's pleading eyes, filled with tears. He hated seeing his love cry, especially if it was because of him. With a decision made in his mind, he put the dagger back into its sheath. He gestured to the two bouncers standing by.

"Bring him to the farthest back room. Tie him in there and make sure he can't escape. Inform Bakura and Mariku about him, and tell them to see me right now. Well, what are you waiting for? Get this fool out of my sight now before I change my mind and decapitate him."

Yugi almost backed away from the sheer cold in Yami's tone. Both watched as the two bouncers dragged the excessively bleeding man down to the first level. Yami wordlessly turned to Yugi, eyes softening as he saw his little one's tears.

"Yugi, please stop crying."

Yugi furiously wiped the tears away with the back of his arm. "I can't help it, Yami. I'm… not used to you being like… that."

Yami hung his head, his anger gradually disappearing to be replaced by remorse. "I'm sorry."

Yugi didn't know what to say in return, and he shook his head instead. "I think I need to go back to my dorm. I'll… I'll be seeing you around, Yami." He said, moving up to peck Yami on the cheek. The small kiss felt dull and lifeless, and it was so chaste it wasn't even enough to satisfy a virgin.

As he watched Yugi walk away from the club, Yami suddenly felt drained. He sat down on his throne, taking off the crown that covered his forehead. His blond bangs fell to his face as he clutched his temple.

He knew for a fact that Yugi was hurt inside. But he didn't know why. What was so wrong about wanting to protect the one that you loved the most?

**&&&**

Ryou, with an unconscious Malik held in Mariku's arms, entered room 1254 of the Domino High Dormitory. Mariku raised a light eyebrow as he glanced at their room in mild wonder. So this was where the two boys lived. To top it off, it was a very fine coincidence that the boys that he and Bakura had been, for lack of better words, _chasing after _were best friends. Very fine coincidence, indeed.

A smirk crossed Mariku's face as he remembered that Yami's little pet studied in that very school as well. Maybe they also knew a certain Mutou Yugi. Maybe they even had Yami for a teacher. What a twist of fate if they were all connected to each other in some way.

"Uhm… Osiris-san?" Ryou's soft, shy voice penetrated through his train of thought.

"Oh, right, sorry. Which bunk should I put him in?"

"Malik's on the top bunk, normally. But I figured it would be easier for him if he would take the lower bunk. I don't want him to fall out of the bed if he wakes up suddenly."

"Wise kid" Mariku complimented him as he set Malik down on the lower bunk as he was told. Mariku didn't resist the urge to smooth Malik's wheat-blond bangs off his forehead. He marveled at the younger boy's almost ethereal beauty as he sat down on the edge of the bed, then he turned to look at Ryou.

"If you want, you can skip work tomorrow. Kami-sama knows that Malik here needs special care."

Ryou blinked, then shook his head. "As much as I want to, I can't. I've really got to earn money for myself. But…," He lowered his head, clearly torn between two decisions. "I really do want to take care of Malik, too. I feel that it's partly my fault for not looking out for him."

Mariku shook his head. "It's not your fault, Ryou. It's no one's fault. Besides, you were doing your job."

At the mention of his job, Ryou paled visibly. "Oh, no. I left early and I was supposed to be there until ten. I'm sorry, Osiris-san!" He exclaimed, bowing apologetically.

Mariku chuckled, waving his hand in dismissal. "Don't worry about it. We'll still give your pay. It's almost nine thirty, anyway."

Ryou sighed in relief, smiling at Mariku gratefully. "Thank you."

Mariku nodded. "No problem. So, I guess you'll be coming to work the day after tomorrow?"

"If it's okay with Yami-san and Bakura-san, too…"

"I'll take care of those two for you. You have a reasonable enough excuse to miss work. They'll understand. Yami and Bakura are good people, although they've both had tough times."

Ryou tilted his head in mild curiosity. "Tough times?"

Mariku cursed inwardly since he almost gave he and his friends' secrets away. He looked up to find Ryou's wide, hazel eyes staring at him, as if he were looking right through him. Strangely, he felt as if he couldn't exactly lie to the boy just like that. "Yeah, tough times. Did you know that they're technically brothers?"

Ryou's face had the most bewildered expression on it that Mariku just had to chuckle. "They don't look alike at all, I know. But they are, if you look at legal documents and all that shebang. There it says in bold letters, **'Crawford Yami and Crawford Bakura'**. The same man adopted them both. Yeah, their last names don't fit, right? That's one of the reasons why they had to switch back to their real birth names when—"

"… When what, Mariku-san?"

Mariku caught himself just in time. Now _that _part of Yami and Bakura's past wasn't in his place to reveal. "Ah, nothing."

"But you also implied that there are more reasons to them changing their last names. What happened to their adoptive father?" Ryou knew that he shouldn't pry into something that was most likely intimate, personal details, but this was a chance to get to know Bakura. He wasn't the type to just let opportunities go by that quickly.

Mariku really had to commend Bakura's taste. Ryou had both beauty and brains, and was a very perceptive kid, to boot. Still, he wasn't one to go around spilling details about their pasts. "If you want those questions answered, you should go to Bakura. It's really not my place to tell you. Sorry, kid."

Ryou's curiosity was piqued even more with that, but he decided to give up on Mariku. "I understand."

Well, at least he knew his limits, Mariku thought. "I'll be going now, so you take good care of Malik here, okay?"

"Expect nothing less, Mariku-san." Ryou replied, smiling at the sight of Mariku lovingly caressing Malik's cheek in a gesture of farewell.

The older blond teen stood up from the edge of the bed, bidding goodnight to Ryou and silently wishing that Malik would recover soon. It looked like Malik had incredibly tough nerves, to withstand the alcohol and the admittedly small but nonetheless still dangerous amount of drugs. He still wondered what got him so shaken up when he tried to touch him, though. Well, he'd probably find out soon if Yami's interrogation was through. Or maybe he'd even find out from Malik himself.

That is, if Malik would ever set foot in the club again. Surely he would be terrified after what happened to him inside…

He distracted himself by humming idly while he walked the streets back to the club. As soon as he was about to go inside however, Akira hounded him instantly. "Boss Mariku! Boss Yami and Boss Bakura are waiting for you on the second level! Urgent business!"

Ugh. Those two impatient bastards. They were probably already pissed at him for being later than they expected. "Yeah, thanks for the info, Akira," he said in reply, setting his gaze upward to the second level. As expected, two pairs of eyes looked down at him, waiting.

When he finally ascended the stairs, he was a bit surprised to see that Yami and Bakura weren't snarling at him like rabid dogs. Instead, Yami looked dejected while Bakura's face was contorted into a rather uncharacteristic look of worry.

"Mariku, you're finally here." Yami greeted him, and there was emptiness in his voice.

"Something wrong, pharaoh?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Of course there's something wrong, you twit. Someone was just drugged right under our noses." Bakura snapped at him.

"Not _that_. I mean, yeah, that's one of our troubles. But it looks as if Pharaoh here has other problems to deal with. Mind sharing some of them? I know Bakura here's an idiot when it comes to giving advice," Mariku ignored the heated glare and the clenched fist that was sent threateningly in his way. "But you know, if we can't help you, no one else can."

Yami stared at him, and Bakura's face turned serious as he murmured a barely audible "He's right, Yami. You have to tell us before it eats up what's left of your soul."

Yami sighed, massaging his temples as he purposely ignored Bakura's somewhat snide remark. "It's Yugi. Basically, he saw me torturing that dealer for information."

Mariku frowned. "So what? He's seen you in your worst moods."

"No. This has to be the worst yet," Yami answered, digging his fingers deeper onto his forehead. "I almost killed the guy because Yugi said that he was the one who drugged him a week and a half ago."

Bakura's previously narrowed eyes immediately widened. "You mean it was _him_?"

"Yes. I… I guess my self-control just slipped away, and I just wanted to slice him open so badly… Yugi stopped me, and I made Akira and Ruko take the dealer into the farthest back room. Then Yugi left, and he's hurting. But I don't know why."

Bakura approached him and patted his shoulder without any sign of hesitation. "He'll come to his senses soon. He… he loves you, right? And you were only doing it to protect him."

Yami closed his eyes. "But it still doesn't change the fact that I tried to kill the dealer. And I honestly would have done it, if it weren't for Yugi."

Mariku stared at him and Bakura for a long moment, before he broke the silence with his slowly whispered words,

"But – we promised never to kill again. No matter what. Right?"

Yami and Bakura looked back at him, and replied in perfect, grim synchrony,

"Right."

**&&&**

A few hours passed with no trouble for Ryou and the still-out-cold Malik. Before anyone knew it, morning had come to herald the start of a new school day. As much as Ryou would like to skip classes to take care of Malik, he couldn't because of a particular History Exam. And so there he was, standing in front of their vanity mirror and fixing his black tie, but still feeling no less troubled.

He could almost hear Malik's teasing voice behind his back, chiding him with a loud "Ne, Ryou, Didn't I tell you that you'd look prettier if you braided your hair?" He didn't know why, but Malik had always tried to coax him to braid his hair, even attempting to tie him to a chair and braid his hair himself. Of course, that didn't work in the end because of a certain talent that Ryou had at escaping any kind of bindings.

Still…

It wouldn't exactly hurt to actually grant one of Malik's long-time wishes. He allowed himself a small smile as he picked up a black hair band perched precariously atop one of the wooden edges of the mirror. Carefully, he separated his hair into three different parts and began to braid it to perfection.

He reached behind to secure the end, then tucked a few strands of silver hair that had escaped from its confines behind his ear. He was almost afraid to look in the mirror, thinking to himself that he must somehow look ridiculous, not to mention all-too feminine. He already had a face that was too effeminate for his liking, and he knew the braid accentuated that particular feature.

He turned away from the mirror and quietly picked up his school bag. Feeling the light weight of his braid hit his back, he almost swatted at it irritably. Then he turned to look at Malik's sleeping form on the lower bunk, and he sighed. If only Malik was okay…

He went outside and locked the door to their dorm, and began to walk the corridors towards his first class. He passed by a few lower classmen who knew him and they waved at him, and he returned it in kind, albeit weakly.

He entered his homeroom class without many fanfares, aside from the occasional compliment of his "new hairdo". Then Yugi came in, looking forlorn and beaten-down.

His brows creased as Yugi sat down next to him. "Yugi, what's wrong?"

Yugi's head snapped up to look at him, and he could see the red in the smaller teen's eyes as though he had been crying buckets of tears. "Oh… Hi, Ryou. I didn't see you there for a second." He laughed weakly and forced a smile.

Ryou clearly did not appreciate that much. He already had an unconscious Malik to deal with and here was another stubborn, possibly sick friend who wanted to play guessing games with him. "Yugi, what happened to you? Lately, you haven't exactly been yourself. Tell me what's wrong."

Ryou swore that Yugi almost looked panicked for a second, but Yugi lowered his head. "No, nothing's wrong, really," He looked back and stared at Ryou to try and divert the conversation. "Wow, Ryou, I like what you've done to your hair today. You look… pretty."

If there was _another _thing he didn't like, it was half-hearted attempts to distract him from more important matters. And he was just called pretty, which he didn't exactly like, either, since he was a boy. ( He seemed to conveniently forget the fact that _Bakura _had called him "beautiful" just the night before, and he didn't mind it at all ) The only one he knew who _liked _being called pretty was Malik, and he didn't really count, since Malik was insane and vain and… drugged.

Ryou suppressed a shiver down his spine as he opened his mouth to try to talk to Yugi again, but he was stopped as a hand gleefully fingered his braid. It was Jounouchi.

"Jou-kun!" Yugi exclaimed, a huge and ultimately grateful smile overtaking his face as he looked up at the sunshine blond-haired boy.

"Hey, Yugi! Hey, Ryou!" He greeted, still not letting go of Ryou's braid. "Nice braid you got here, Ryou! You look like… like an angel! Was it Ishtar who did this? If he did, he could definitely be a hell of a stylist in the future!"

Jou and Yugi did not notice the way that Ryou stiffened at the mention Malik's last name. "Malik isn't coming to class today, he's – sick… so I did this myself."

"Sick? That blond bimbo is sick?" Came the dignified voice of one Kaiba Seto as he too, entered the classroom and went towards Jou and company's direction. "Somehow I find that hard to believe. He's got one of the toughest nerves of anyone I know," He turned to Ryou and raised a fine eyebrow "Are you sure he isn't playing hooky or off fucking someone's brains out?"

Yugi's light blush and Jou's indignant squawk all paled in comparison to Ryou's sharp glare. "Seto-kun, I won't take kindly to you insulting Malik when he's clearly too sick to defend himself."

Surprisingly enough, Seto nodded and mumbled a barely audible "Sorry" at Ryou. The silver-haired boy wasn't a pretty sight at all when he was angry. Didn't they always say that you had to watch out for the quiet, beautiful ones because they were the ones who could cause a real ruckus?

The bell rang, and everyone took their respective seats, abruptly ending the four's exchanges. It wasn't Yami-sensei who entered when the second bell rang, but rather it was their principal, and in tow was a tall, brown-haired boy about their age.

"Class," The principal called out to get their attention, and everyone went silent. "You have a new student joining you today. Please introduce yourself."

The boy nodded, and he beamed at the whole class. "My name is Honda Hiroto and I'm a student transferee from Kanagawa. It's nice to meet you all."

**&&&**

**TBC…**

In the next chapter, the new transfer student unexpectedly takes a liking to Ryou, Malik is still bedridden and… what's this? Bakura comes for a visit? Looks like Ryou and Bakura's romance is finally going to go somewhere! all the fluff fans rejoice But what about the three club owners' pasts? How is that connected to anything? Find out in the coming chapters!

Oh, and take note of Ryou's "talent", because I think it'll come in handy in the chapters to come… hint hint On another sidenote, you may recognize the one I described to be Yami's pharaoh get-up since it's his _real _pharaoh garb in the Anime's Egyptian arc, episodes 201-202.

A big, huge **THANK YOU** to my encouraging reviewers:

koumori wolf, Rikainiel, December Jewel, Elle-FaTe2x1, Wizzu, citcat-chan, Maruken, DreamingChild, It'sHardToBelieve, Sugar-Kat, scryed, AngelStarFire Hikarist: Ack! I updated already! Thank you for the praise and support, and I hope you guys enjoyed this one as well.

Princess of Mirrors: Everything I've wanted to say to you was already said in our emails, still, thank you for everything.

Yamiyugistalker: Err… Somehow, I've never taken to praise that much, especially praise of your kind. My humble servant? Oh my... you make me blush, really. It's great to know that you think this is a cool idea, thanks so much for that.

person6: Aah! Yeah, Crawfords _are _screwed, aren't they? Well, all I can say is that Kaiba is definitely _not _the blue-eyed guy from last chapter. How many acts will there be? About three, I guess. Also, as much as I would want to, I can't tell right now if Crawford will die in the end ( Read: I don't know myself _. _Ehehe...). There wasn't much fluff in this one, but the next chapter will be loaded with it, as far as I can tell. Thanks and much love!


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